Slip and fall accidents on Cruise Ships occur quite often; statistically, it is the most common type of injury. Keep in mind; you have one year from the date of the accident to file suit (In most cases). Let us go into detail about the kinds of slip and fall, and what you can and cannot do legally, and the types of cases our cruise ship lawyer take.
Index
- Types of slip and falls
- How much is a slip and fall accident
- The process of filing a slip and fall lawsuit
- Statute of Limitations on cruise ships for accidents
- When and why you cannot sue the cruise line
- Slip and fall case requirements
- Our experience, what we can do for you
Types of slip and falls
Broken, Fractured Bones
Sprained ankles or wrists
When attempting to protect yourself from a slip and fall, your body will automatically try to mitigate the damages from the resulting accident. When trying to protect your body from further damage your ligaments from your hands, wrist, or legs can snap.
Even though we usually turn down sprained accidents because these tend to heal after a long while. However, if the sprain is in conjunction with a broken bone, our Miami cruise ship lawyers can help you file suit.
Knee damage
Knees can be extremely painful, especially if they break or tear from a slip and trip accident during your vacation on a cruise ship. The knee is quite complex from a human anatomy perspective; it contains several ligaments and bones. If you suffered an injury to your ACL or MCL, these quite often take a while to recover and may require major surgery on the knee.
Spine and nerve damage
The nerves and spine are exceptionally prone to injuries, in a slip and fall scenario on a cruise ship, a person can suffer catastrophically. Spine and nerve damage can be permanent depending on what the exact injuries are, fortunately, most recover from such accidents.
Traumatic brain injury
Traumatic brain injury, aka TBI for short happens if you slipped and fell on your head. A brain injury is typically extremely severe; it is hard to diagnose without a proper MRI or CAT scan machine, and most are unaware of the gravity of the accident.
A neurologist must look at the brain injury and provide a diagnosis and a prognosis. If a brain injury resulting from a slip and fall on a cruise ship is left untreated, it can cause pain for months.
How much is a slip and fall accident for cruise ships
The amount of money compensated through a slip and fall lawsuit can vary considerably on a case by case basis. These are just small samples of the common types of slip and fall accidents on cruise ships. For example, someone who is a persistent vegetative state from a slip and fall can obtain millions in terms of monetary compensation.
Neck Injury, minor to major –
Wrist injuries, minor to major – 7,232 to 58,297
Nose injuries, minor to major – 1,300 to 18,440
Knee injury, minor to major – 11,820 to 55,590
Shoulder injury, minor to major – £6,290 to £38,280
Elbow injury, minor to major – £12,480 to £43,710
Arm Injury, minor to major – £5,280 to £104,370
This greatly correlates to the research the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention did which states that slip and falls cost a person $30,000 on average.
Slip & Fall Cruise ship case settlements examples
Denise Kaba V Carnival Corporaiton – $2.9 Million
In the case of Denise V Carnival Corporation, Carnival admitted it was negligent thus admitted responsibly for Denise’s fractured patella. The patella is part of the knee cap, which required extensive surgery. Denise had several surgeries, two, which consisted of open reduction and internal fixation.
Through the years she continued more operations for her knee cap which were:
Source: US National Library of Medicine
Finding of facts & conclusion of law
Essentially, what this means is its a legal break down of all past, present, and future expenses in the 3.2 million lawsuits against carnival corporation.
- $170,483.00 for lost earning capacity from the date of trial.
- $221,910.55 for past medical expenses.
- $373,564.00 for future medical expenses.
- $2,160,000.00 for past and future non-economic damages.
- $10,410.88 in pre-judgment interest as to past damages.
Danny Simpson V Steiner Transocean Ltd. and NCL (Bahamas), Ltd – 9.5 million
Danny was working while aboard Norwegian cruise line as a fitness instructor, Danny is a U.K. citizen. Danny slipped and fell and obtained catastrophic damages to he’s spine and nerves, consequently, severely damaging the urological system.
He is permanently damaged as he has impotence and underwent through several surgeries for a penile implant. Danny has a catheter and suffers from chronic bowel and urinary complications.
The process of filing a slip and fall lawsuit
Usually, a lawsuit against a cruise ship in Miami follows these 4 main rules, below is a little explanation on the due process of the law:
Duty
It is the cruise lines responsibility when it comes to the safety of everyone on board; this includes both passengers and crew members. Safety measures, such as railings, emergency procedures, floor material, and making sure the floor surface is dry is the top priority for any cruise line.
Your safety has to be at the forefront of every cruise line to prevent a slip and fall from occurring. The reason safety is such an essential factor is that it is the cruise lines duty to ensure people don’t get injured. An example of this can be, a liquid substance on the floor; it has to be slip-resistant.
Breach of Duty
Breach of duty or duty of care is the same thing. There are two ways this can happen on purpose or by accident. If the cruise line did not take proper steps, ensuring your safety for whatever reason, this is considered a breach of care. Some good examples are, there was no warning sign that the floor was wet, or if a crew member spots someone drunk and they get hurt.
To sum it all up, breach of duty when the cruise lines fail to prevent you from slipping and falling, here are some examples:
- Failure to alert about any probable dangers
- Failing to dry a wet floor
- Failing to notify you about an uneven floor or staircase