With cruises becoming more affordable and ships adding more entertainment and luxury goodies to the smorgasbord they offer, cruises have become a popular vacation option. However, the numbers of accidents and injuries involving passengers and crewmembers have also been on the increase.
A cruise ship injury may involve either a passenger or a crewmember. Both may be at risk for the same kind of injuries, like falls on the ship, falls overboard and contagious diseases and epidemics. Crewmembers are also at risk from kitchen explosions, galley fires, and work-related injuries. Options for recovery are entirely different, based on whether you are a passenger on the liner, or employed on one.
Typically, a crewmember on a cruise ship is likely to meet the definition of a Jones Act seaman. The Jones Act requires that a crewmember be assigned to a vessel to navigation, and have a substantial connection with the vessel. Most workers on a cruise ship are likely to meet this definition.
Under the Jones Act, injured crewmembers are eligible for
- Maintenance and cure payments that cover the cost of the daily upkeep of the seaman and his medical costs
- A claim of negligence under the Jones Act, in case of employer negligence
- A claim of unseaworthiness, in case of failure by the owner of the vessel to maintain a safe ship
Cruise ship passengers may be covered under general maritime laws. There is no question of separate payments for medical costs and maintenance expenses, and there are no grounds for unseaworthiness claims. Payouts under general maritime law tend to be lower than under the Jones Act.
Maritime attorney Brian Beckcom is a Board Certified trial lawyer, whose primary focus is the representation of injured Jones Act seamen, including deckhands, galleyhands, waiters, chefs, dancers, entertainers, card dealers, and other cruise ship workers in accidents in Texas, around the country and in international waters.
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