Miami Cruise Ship Injury Lawyer
Slip and Fall on a Cruise Ship
Cruise Ship Trip and Falls
A trip and fall on a cruise ship can quickly turn a dream vacation into a nightmare. Over the years, our personal injury law firm has represented numerous passengers and crew members that sustain serious bodily harm from hidden or latent dangers leading to trip and falls. Most common are trips or falls on uneven steps, staircases and stairwells. A trip or fall on a ship occurs when there is forward movement that is impaired or impeded by a unstable surface or dangerous surface. This danger is compounded by the natural motion of a cruise ship along with its proximity to water makes the risk of a fall greater than when walking on land. Cruise ship trips and falls can cause serious injuries that often necessitate hospitalization, surgery, and periods of disability. Many cruise ship operators almost uniformly blame the injury victim claiming that the fall happened because the passenger or crew members was not paying attention. We know this is not true. A cruise ship trip and fall is usually foreseeable and preventable and is usually due to some sort of negligence by the ship or crew.
At Juan Cordero PA Our cruise ship trip and fall attorneys are here to help. Our cruise ship attorneys are experienced fighting cruise line companies and holding them accountable for their negligence. We understand the substantive and procedural legal issues that injury victims must face. The cruise line may fight you, but we will also fight back to protect you too.
Why Falls Happen on Cruise Ships
The risk of falling down steps or a flight of stairs on a cruise ship are higher because of the lack of uniform building standards and safety codes. Most land based environments such as Florida resort and many other premises are subject to the Florida Building Codes, industry standards, other pedestrian safety regulations and are designed to promote uniformity and safety. However, cruise ships are not required to comply with these standards, so risers, banisters, steps, and treads can have atypical and unsafe dimensions. Passengers may encounter uneven steps or treads resulting in a trip and fall accident due to wear and tear. The lack of uniformity in the construction of cruise ship stairways and steps on cruise ships can significantly increase the risk of a trip and fall accident.
A tumble down a flight of stairs can result in broken bones, traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, paralysis, fractures, and other serious injuries. Our Florida cruise ship attorneys have handled many cruise ship trip and fall cases against all the major cruise lines including Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Holland America, Disney Cruise Lines, Norwegian, Holland America and others. We understand the special legal and factual challenges involved in representing injured passengers and crew members who suffer serious injuries.
While the lack of safety regulations to ensure the safe design and construction of stairwells and steps on cruise ships constitutes a cause of many falls, there are other factors that can also increase the risk of suffering debilitating injuries. Negligence that causes falls on the stairs of a cruise ship include:
- Bunching of carpet on a step
- Carpeting that becomes depressed
- Inadequate illumination near the stairwell or steps
- Improper repairs
- Loose or missing handrail
- Uneven surfaces
- Improper flooring materials
- Failure to conduct routine inspections
- Improper tread size
- Failure to warn
Although passengers and staff injured in a fall on stairs or steps of a cruise line should promptly report their accident and seek medical attention, caution must be used when speaking to the ship security officers and medical staff. The security personnel typically investigate by taking pictures of the accident scene, the passenger, and the passenger's clothing. The investigation will also include talking to witnesses and obtaining written statements. The doctor also is trained to ask questions designed to provide the foundation for a defense strategy. This approach by the ship's staff makes it important for you to describe all of the hazards that contributed to your fall. Passengers injured in falls down the stairs of a cruise ship also need to seek prompt legal advice from an experienced Florida cruise line staircase accident lawyer.
While broken steps and unsafe staircases can exist both in a Florida resort and on a cruise ship, there are special issues for cruise passengers that necessitate legal representation by a knowledgeable Florida cruise ship accident lawyer. Our attorneys can assist you in negotiating complex issues that include applicable law, the proper jurisdiction to hear the case, and gathering all evidence needed to pursue a legal claim against the cruise line.
Speak to a Cruise Ship Trip and Fall Lawyer Today
If you are a passenger or employee of a cruise line who suffers injury caused by a fall on an improperly maintained step or unsafe stairs don't wait. Time is working against you. Contact a Florida cruise ship accident attorney at (305)525-8957 or email us juancorderolawyers for help.
Miami Cruise Ship Injury Lawyer Slip and Fall Accident
Slip and Fall Accidents on Cruise Ships
Cruise ship slip and fall accidents are the most common ways passengers and crew members are injured. A slip and fall accident on a cruise ship can happen on many types of floor surfaces and for a variety of reasons. They can happen on an open deck, by the pool, in a restaurant, a theater, in bathrooms, a dance floor, and other common areas. Common reasons are due to slippery deck surfaces, wear and tear, or due to transient and foreign substances. Cruise ship slip, trip, & fall cases also happen due to dangerous flooring materials, during routine ship housekeeping, and vessel floor maintenance such as waxing or buffing marble floors. Many hazards and accidents which follow are often due to some sort of negligence by crew members, and even sometimes passengers. Spilled drinks, loose flooring, even water tracked in by guests using swimming pools are common reasons passengers are injured. Over the years, we have seen many passengers seriously injured in slip and falls on cruises. But we have also helped many clients get justice too. The truth is that slip & fall accidents can be prevented. Our job is to prove that in court. That’s what we do.
Whether you slipped or fell in the Wind Jammer Cafe, in the Garden Cafe, or the Lido Deck, our law firm is here to help. At Gerson and Schwartz, our cruise ship slip and fall lawyers conduct regular vessel inspections to help prove our clients cases. We retain leading experts as part of our commitment to our clients in order to test a floor’s slip resistance, or to check for hidden or latent defects that may explain how and why a cruise ship slip and fall happened. That’s because Under United States federal maritime law, cruise ship operators and other marine going vessel surfaces are required to provide adequate slip resistance on open decks and walkway surfaces. Floor surfaces must meet minimum thresholds for slip resistance under wet and dry conditions. This is called the coefficient of friction.
As part of our commitment to our clients, we retain leading experts in engineering, bio-mechanical experts, hunan factors, ship design, and other leading experts in the marine industry to evaluate vessel floors, decks, and walkway surfaces to determine whether or not the veseel complied with all applicable federal and international safety regulations for our clients in slip and fall accident cases.
If you or a loved one sustain a serious injury on a cruise ship, our personal injury law firm may even conduct a vessel inspection so we can evaluate test and inspect the area where your accident occurred. Gerson and Schwartz law firm specializes in cruise ship slip and fall injury claims. Our cruise slip and fall attorneys are located in Miami, Florida close to the port of Miami. We routinely represent injured passengers and crew against all the major cruise line operators. Our personal injury law firm has the knowledge, experience expertise and resources to combat the cruise line companies for their negligence and hold them accountable. Though the cruise line will fight you, we will also fight back to protect your legal rights.
Why Cruise Ship Slip and Fall Accidents are Common
A cruise ship has the same type slip and fall hazards that people encounter on shore or other land based environments. But, they also have a number of potential other safety hazards that are inherent to a marine environment. This includes corrosion from salt water, sea spray, and water tracked into high traffic areas from pool areas. Spilled drinks, wet or foreign substances, food in restaurants, loose flooring to water tracked in by guests using the swimming pools, even dim lighting in stairwells and hallways are all common causes. Cruise ship slips & falls can also be due to negligent design, negligent maintenance or due dangerous surfaces available due to the limited selection of deck and flooring materials that appear to be wood and other surfaces used on land. Severe weather, such as wind heavy rain, and rough seas are also common contributing factors.
Other cruise ship and maritime related slip, trip and fall accidents specific to cruise ships may be due to foreign objects that are blown over due to wind, or ship equipment that is not properly maintained or properly secured. If you were injured in a slip and fall accident don't delay. Contact a cruise ship slip and fall lawyer today by calling 305.525.8957 or send us an email at Juancordero@juancorderolawyers.com
Common Causes of Slip, Trip, and Fall Accidents our lawyers have experience include:
- Slip and Falls Due to Wet, Foreign, or Transitory Substances
- Cruise Ship Slip and Falls Accidents Due to Use of Slippery Surfaces
- Failing to Utilize Non Skid Strips, Mats, or Slip Resistant Materials
- Falls on Cruise Ships due to Tripping Hazards including Damaged Floors, Carpet,
- Cracked, Damaged, Broken Tiles or Uneven Floor Surfaces
- Cruise Ship Trip & Falls on Thresholds
- Slip, Trip, and Falls on Gangways
- Falls on Steps and Stairwells due to Raised Metal Nosing or Bunched Carpeting
- Ship Slip-and-Falls due to Negligent Failure to Correct or Maintain Common Areas
- Negligent Maintenance of Decks and other Floor Surfaces
- Failing to Warn of Known a Danger About a Particular Floor or Surface
- Crew Member or Cruise Liner's Creating a Slip and Fall Hazard
Did the Cruise Line Negligence Cause Your Slip and Fall Accident?
Under federal maritime law, cruise line operators owe a legal duty of reasonable care. Like businesses ashore, cruise line operators and employees are legally responsible for keeping their decks, floor surfaces and other common areas on the vessel in a safe condition. The legal standard of reasonable care under the circumstances is not always not easy to delineate. How and what constitutes reasonable care is dependent on a number of factors. This includes providing verbal or visual warnings, to correct a dangerous area, or marking off areas where foreign substances and hazards may be. Visual and verbal warnings are important to ensure passenger safety. Foreign substances often make their way on cruise ships and their decks. If the dangerous condition existed long enough, regardless of who created it the dangerous condition, cruise line has a legal obligation to correct it and to warn passengers. If it does not and you are injured as a result, the cruise line is responsible for the injuries that result.
Knowledge of a risk other dangerous condition is also required under United States federal maritime law. Other factors a cruise ship slip and fall accident lawyer will analyze is the number of prior slip and fall incidents that have occurred. We also look to see what the cruise line operators knowledge of potential dangers and whether a cruise line had reason to know of a hidden or latent danger and what the cruise line did or failed to about in light of their knowledge.
Contact Us Toll Free at (305)525-8957 Today for a Legal Opinion or Contact Us Online
Under the federal maritime law, cruise liners also owe a legal duty to warn customers about known dangers. The legal duty to warn does not just apply to wet or foreign substances but to any danger that the cruise line knew or should have known. Examples of inadequate warnings on a ship may include the failure to use a caution or wet floors sign while performing routine cleaning or maintenance, or simply failing to mark off an area that has just been cleaned. If the cruise line creates a dangerous condition or fails to take reasonable safety and security measures they are responsible for all injuries and harms they have caused. If you were injured in a slip and fall accident on a cruise due to the negligence of the ship or their employees you may be entitled to recover financial compensation for your injuries.
In some cases, our Florida cruise ship lawyers have uncovered the existence of dozens upon dozens of prior slip and fall accidents giving rise to claims for punitive damages. High traffic areas must be free of dangers and safety hazards. Cruise line companies may also be responsible for slip, trip and fall accidents due to potential hazards they create. Dangerous conditions can be due to negligent cleaning practices by cruise ship employees, or simply a failure by them to warn of about it or other failing to undertake other reasonable safety precautions.
Common Injuries in Cruise Ship Slip & Fall
The average age of a cruise ship passenger is over 50 years old, and because of this, even what seems like a minor accident can cause serious injuries with long term medical complications and financial repercussions. Some of the common injuries resulting from these types of accidents that our law firm handles include:
- Broken Bones to Arms and Legs
- Orthopedic Injuries
- Head Injuries
- Fractures Requiring Surgical Repair
- Ligament Injuries
- Tendon Injuries
- Brain Injuries
- Injuries to Extremeties like Hands, Wrists, and Knees
- Concussions and Closed Head Injuries
- Back and Spinal Cord Injuries
- Lacerations and Contusions
Cruise Ship Slip & Fall Accidents Involve Complex Litigation Requiring Experienced Attorneys
Litigating against cruise ship companies is a difficult process that requires an experienced cruise ship attorney. Most cruise line passenger ticket contracts exclusively require litigation against the company be brought in certain courts, predominantly in Florida federal courts. Over time, various judicial rulings have created an environment that is very favorable to the defending companies. Cruise line operators also typically put clauses in their ticketing contracts that limit the time people have to notify of the company of their intent to file a legal claim and the time in which they may sue over a personal injury claim in order to potentially bar injury victim's rights to recover against them for their negligence.
What to do if You are Injured in a Slip and Fall on a Cruise Ship
In a cruise ship slip and fall or any other serious accident involving personal injury it is important to document the condition. Take photographs, get the names of witnesses, an crew personnel who may have observed the condition. The cruise lines will fight to keep any information they can away from you if you are injured. Once passengers or crew members leave the ship they know witnesses and crew members with knowledge may be difficult to locate.
If you are seriously injured on a cruise ship you need experienced lawyers. What many cruise ship slip and fall victims don't realize are the great lengths that ship operators have undertaken to shield themselves from legal claims. Forum selection clauses, requiring injury victims to file legal claims in certain jurisdictions, choice of law provisions, waivers, requiring passengers to sign a passenger injury statement, and many other nuances in the cruise ship investigative policies and procedures are all aimed to make it more difficult for injury victims obtain fair compensation. Contact a cruise ship slip and fall attorneys at Juan Cordero Lawyers PA.
Why Hire Us For Your Accident Case
The Florida cruise ship slip and fall attorneys at Juan Cordero LawyersP.A., have over 60 years of experience helping slip and fall accident victims both on land and sea recover for their injuries. We can help you too. Our personal injury offices are located in Miami, Florida near both the Port of Miami and Port Everglades. We also have a proven track record of recovering for all types of serious injuries on cruise ships, maritime accidents and other types of serious injury claims. Read our online reviews for yourself. Contact us today to discuss your cruise ship slip and fall claim and see how we can help. Call us toll free at (305)525-8957 or contact us online.