Hurt on Ship-need Advice

[SissasMomE]

I'm sorry, but re-read your cruise contract. I think the time limit has passed for when you had to submit a claim.

Once that statute of limitation is past, I don't think even a lawyer can help.

I'm surprised you didn't follow-up aboard ship, or at least within the first month.

 

It is not a statute of limitation. LOL It is a disclaimer. Nothing more.

[SissasMomE]

OP - it doesn't sound like your damages are worth the trip to an attorney. It sucks it happened, but luckily you were not injured badly. It sounds like you're just looking for a credit from NCL? Send them an email to their social media account. If no response, follow it up with a regular letter. At this late juncture (over a year? Is this the Gem cruise referenced in your signature? 15 months ago?) I doubt they will do anything though. Sorry! Edited - have you checked your NCL account online? They may have issued the credit to your account, and you just weren't aware.

Edited March 21, 2015 by SissasMomE

[FitchburgWIFamily]

Lost:

I am familiar with NCL's procedures when someone is injured on board as my mother was. You filled out forms in the medical center, including one where you described exactly what happened what contributed to it. I am assuming that you noted on that form that you held NCL responsible. As that form is dated and signed by a witness it should constitute notice to the carrier. You should still have a copy of that form...take that and your photos to a personal injury attorney. They should have a lot more advice than we will.

[Single Cruiser]

Mr C slipped in the buffet in the Epic when a waiter spilt some water and went off to get the mop/sign to indicate it was there. The staff were brilliant and fortunately he was only bruised. The medical team checked him out, we received a call that evening and the following day to check he was ok, and given $50 obc as a gesture of goodwill. Truth be told we were shocked at how much they did and didn't expect anything (other than giving Mr C a hand getting up off the floor!) because it was an accident and not done maliciously or due to severe neglect of duty on the part of the company.

 

Sorry you suffered an injury and weren't happy with how it was dealt with, but if it was over a year ago I don't see what you can do.

 

And that's exactly how it would be over here in the UK. But the OP is from the USA and along with shooting things legal claims against everything and everyone seem the norm! :rolleyes:

[garycarla]

It sucks.

 

It happens.

 

Personally, I would move on.

 

And, yes, SOMETIMES an attorney can get you something. We usually only hear about those that do. We rarely hear about the masses that do not.

[janpo]

I fell while on our cruise on the Sky in January of this year.

 

I was walking through the buffet to get to the restrooms on the other side of the buffet and down i went.

 

Only after i fell did i see the yellow caution sign sitting on the rug around 5 feet away and not on the tile where i fell. Two employees helped me up right away. I was more embarrassed than anything at first and just wanted to get up and get out of there.

 

While walking back to my husband on the deck, my leg was hurting. I told him and he thought we should at least go to the hospital on deck to get it checked out and make a report of it.

 

I filled out the report and a security guard was called to go over what happened also. He told me they would be checking the cameras to see what happened. I said that was fine. I did ask him why the yellow caution sign was 5 ft away from the wet tile. He told me they do that because too many people trip over the sign if it's on the tile. To me, that doesn't make sense. He asked me what shoes i was wearing and i showed him since i still had them on. Not heels, but flat sandals.

 

My leg was sore for a day or so and i did have bruise but that's it. I didn't make anything out of it and I never heard from the Dr on ship or NCL again.

 

I do think the caution signs should be where it's actually wet though and not 5 ft away.

[KweezyCruiser]

It is not a statute of limitation. LOL It is a disclaimer. Nothing more.

 

It's not a statute of limitations because it's based on contract, not on statute. Nor is it simply a disclaimer. It's a period of limitations established by the contract. These are enforceable if reasonable, and this one is reasonable.

 

And to all those who think that OP is just looking for the promised cruise credit, you can read in another post OP's commitment to never sailing NCL again.

 

OP, I'm sorry that you had such a bad experience and I hope that you have recovered completely.

[Sparkygirl]

I am also familiar with NCL's procedures when an injury occurs on board. My young daughter suffered a significant injury (loss of consciousness, paralysis and brain bleed) onboard an NCL ship and was medically evacuated from the ship on day 3. She has thankfully recovered. The ships physician remained in contact with us for the week after her injury. Guest relations was in contact with us the entire time and within two weeks her credit toward a future cruise was received. (That credit had to be used within a year, so even if OP was promised a credit it may have expired by now). We were sent a letter by email with the credit amount applied to DD's latitudes account.

 

Months after her injury an email would arrive asking for an update. I also emailed the ship when she was discharged asking that the good news be shared and that we would eventually be making our trip home.

 

There are terms and conditions of the contract you signed. Waiting over a year without being proactive is not going to aid is being able to do anything about the situation. Bottom line is were you injured, yes...were you able to continue your vacation...yes. The things that were mentioned impacting your vacation were your choice. Not mandated or required by the cruise line or physician. We had to provide a letter from hospital 1 that evaluated our daughter and the physician that made the diagnosis of her brain bleed requiring future evaluation and care and transferred us to hospital 2 a children's specialty hospital an hour away. Proof that we could not have continued on with our vacation and that it was not our choice to not rejoin the cruise. We also had to submit documents when we were discharged from hospital 2 that we could not rejoin the cruise as we were to remain near hospital 2 for 5 days incase of any further complications before the 1,800 mile journey home.

 

 

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[hpecorari]

I am also familiar with NCL's procedures when an injury occurs on board. My young daughter suffered a significant injury (loss of consciousness, paralysis and brain bleed) onboard an NCL ship and was medically evacuated from the ship on day 3. She has thankfully recovered. The ships physician remained in contact with us for the week after her injury. Guest relations was in contact with us the entire time and within two weeks her credit toward a future cruise was received. (That credit had to be used within a year, so even if OP was promised a credit it may have expired by now). We were sent a letter by email with the credit amount applied to DD's latitudes account.

 

Months after her injury an email would arrive asking for an update. I also emailed the ship when she was discharged asking that the good news be shared and that we would eventually be making our trip home.

 

There are terms and conditions of the contract you signed. Waiting over a year without being proactive is not going to aid is being able to do anything about the situation. Bottom line is were you injured, yes...were you able to continue your vacation...yes. The things that were mentioned impacting your vacation were your choice. Not mandated or required by the cruise line or physician. We had to provide a letter from hospital 1 that evaluated our daughter and the physician that made the diagnosis of her brain bleed requiring future evaluation and care and transferred us to hospital 2 a children's specialty hospital an hour away. Proof that we could not have continued on with our vacation and that it was not our choice to not rejoin the cruise. We also had to submit documents when we were discharged from hospital 2 that we could not rejoin the cruise as we were to remain near hospital 2 for 5 days incase of any further complications before the 1,800 mile journey home.

 

 

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Glad to hear your daughter made a full recovery. What a scary time that must have been!

 

Harriet

[newmexicoNita]

Ncl has ignored you because they know it was their fault you were injured

 

 

 

 

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Sorry I have to disagree with all of you on this one. About a year ago hubby tripped over a lounge and slipped on the deck. Because of his injuries he couldn't use the pool eithet and we had purchased a spa package. So we really lost out, big time. The spa did take off a little of what we had paid, but not much. The reason I disagree with you, is, the ship and the doctors on board went above and beyond to make sure hubby was ok and treated him daily. No, we didn't get a credit of any kind, we didn't even think to ask for one. Yes, his injuries put a damper on our cruise, but accidents do happen.

 

A few years ago, our daughter broke her arm, when getting out of bed; again, the doctors on the ship treated her with respect, put a cast on her arm and never did we get a bill. That was all we could expect.

 

Now, a year later the OP wants to know how to take action or get what he says they were pormised? I would say, drop it, just be happy the injuries were no worse.

 

Being that the OP has other cruise lines he/she likes better than NCL, it is doubtful they would cruise NCL again. As for someone saying this was all NCls fault, I don't buy that either. the cleaning stuff was in the hallway, the passenger didn't see it, how sad and what a way to have to cruise, but I don't see where anyone is really to blame. My husband didn't see the lounge either, who's fault was that?

 

A cruise line isn't going to admit fault, it is called don't admit to anything, don't open up any more possiblities for sueing as it seems everyone wants to do today.

Edited March 21, 2015 by newmexicoNita

[newmexicoNita]

Mr C slipped in the buffet in the Epic when a waiter spilt some water and went off to get the mop/sign to indicate it was there. The staff were brilliant and fortunately he was only bruised. The medical team checked him out, we received a call that evening and the following day to check he was ok, and given $50 obc as a gesture of goodwill. Truth be told we were shocked at how much they did and didn't expect anything (other than giving Mr C a hand getting up off the floor!) because it was an accident and not done maliciously or due to severe neglect of duty on the part of the company.

 

Sorry you suffered an injury and weren't happy with how it was dealt with, but if it was over a year ago I don't see what you can do.

 

Our experience as well, but we didn't get the OBC.

[zqvol]

Disclaimers mean nothing. He is not SOL.

 

It is not a disclaimer, it is a portion of the contract, and it is enforceable. In all likelihood the OP is SOL because of the statute of limitations (under governing law) has likely run. OP may have a bigger problem in finding an attorney in that this claim is probably not worth a lot, and the economics of scale make it not worth the attorney's time to take such a case.

Edited March 21, 2015 by zqvol

[Davechipp74]

I'm sure after a year, his stiches are out, the swelling is gone, and his eye is no longer black and blue, therefor nothing to worry about, but people want to bring lawyers into this and what sue NCL ? Dont be one of "those" people.

[fshagan]

Consulting an attorney, even if you have to pay him for his time, is the only way to know which of the various opinions on Cruise Critic actually apply.

 

I have no idea which law applies, the state laws where NCL is based, US law, the law of the country the OP was in, maritime law, etc. All could have different limitations on when you can bring an action, and all could be different in the way they treat the terms of the cruise contract. Law often trumps what is in a contract.

[Guindalf]

How much do you think you'll get out of NCL if you decided to wait fifteen months to complain?

 

Sure, you can yell and scream on a public forum, but in reality, that and a dollar will get you a cup of coffee!

 

If it was that important, then you should have complained louder at the time. I don't believe for just one second that NCL completely ignored the issue. I'm willing to bet that they called the room on a few different occasions and found you not there, meaning that you ARE able to get out and about. If this was not the case, you should have made it known at the time and I'm sure they would have corrected it.

 

On my Epic cruise, a friend got a stomach bug and was confined to his room for a couple of days. They checked on him constantly and even provided a DVD player and movies - as well as free movie rentals to keep him entertained.

 

It's not a question of SOL, but more "Why did you wait so long?".

 

Fifteen months is longer than the warranty on most electronics. Try returning a toaster after that amount of time and see where it'll get you!

[smeyer418]

Disclaimers mean nothing. He is not SOL.

Almost all courts that have decided the limitation on suing, especially the ones in Florida where this suit must be brought, have enforced the limitation. I am a lawyer. I watch these cases.

 

see for example

 

http://www.lipcon.com/cruise-line-law-reporter/october-2014-issue/

 

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/14/travel/questions-cruise-passengers/index.html

 

While some clauses of the contract may be unenforceable. A 'reasonable' limitation on the time to sue will be. Most courts enforce the one year one as reasonable.

simply out of luck(the family thread version)

[sjn911]

Almost all courts that have decided the limitation on suing, especially the ones in Florida where this suit must be brought, have enforced the limitation. I am a lawyer. I watch these cases.

 

see for example

 

http://www.lipcon.com/cruise-line-law-reporter/october-2014-issue/

 

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/14/travel/questions-cruise-passengers/index.html

 

While some clauses of the contract may be unenforceable. A 'reasonable' limitation on the time to sue will be. Most courts enforce the one year one as reasonable.

simply out of luck(the family thread version)

 

I agree..,,just as a regular person not an attorney. OP your best shot would be to write a kind letter explaining what happened and note in confusion you neglected to ask for cruise credit promised...Maybe...just Maybe they will give you a small credit... although I am not an expert...a year and not a peep means you are probably ok and just maybe kicking yourself for not acting sooner....

 

I think cruiselines do their best..if we do our best..get properly insured..and stop trying to get something for everything as a society...we stop feeling so burned..start seeing it all as half full..and usually the better attitude brings the help we get in these situations..and this mode has the best chance of fair help and injury/loss repair meeting or exceeding our expectations...I know it is hard and life gets beyond overwhelming with details we need to cover and we miss some.....all is just my theory and 2 cents having learned the hard way and gone through the whole gamut of hope and attitude in the negative and positive levels of "problem.... loss....and hurt" management.

Edited March 21, 2015 by sjn911

[mdvlprof]

Mr C slipped in the buffet in the Epic when a waiter spilt some water and went off to get the mop/sign to indicate it was there. The staff were brilliant and fortunately he was only bruised. The medical team checked him out, we received a call that evening and the following day to check he was ok, and given $50 obc as a gesture of goodwill. Truth be told we were shocked at how much they did and didn't expect anything (other than giving Mr C a hand getting up off the floor!) because it was an accident and not done maliciously or due to severe neglect of duty on the part of the company.

 

Sorry you suffered an injury and weren't happy with how it was dealt with, but if it was over a year ago I don't see what you can do.

 

Yup.

I tripped [over my own two feet :D], spilled my specialty coffee. Someone from guest services happened to be passing by. Was very helpful. Made sure I was okay. Helped me to a sofa so I could sit down. Cleaned up spill. Got me another coffee [at no charge] .. and an éclair-type pastry, too.

[Kingofwylietx]

I'll probably get flamed for this, let put on a fireproof suit real quick.

 

I don't know the circumstances, but what exactly would the cruise line owe someone that tripped for not seeing some cleaning supplies on the floor? If we can sue for not paying attention.....I've missed out on millions by being aware of my surroundings (that's discrimination against us that look where we are walking).

 

Maybe there were extenuating circumstances, but on the surface I don't think people should be rewarded for their own negligence. No offense is intended to the OP, I just think people shouldn't need babysitting. You should be aware of what is in your path of travel, whether you are walking, running, driving, or piloting a spaceship.

 

On the other hand, OP, they should give you anything they promised. Good luck.

[smeyer418]

BTW very little in the cruise contract is unenforceable. Generally unless there is a strong public policy(or a specific statutory rules that applies) against such a clause, the cruise lines are free to impose it.

So its against US law to limit liability for physical injuries caused by a cruise lines negligence (or their officers employees or agents) on a cruise that leaves from , stops in or returns to the US but solely mental injuries(not within the zone of danger) can be disclaimed. This does not stop the cruise line from limiting venue, limits of time or class actions so far. As we discussed on another thread at least one federal appeals court has told a cruise line they can no longer disclaim liability for physician independent contractors-not with standing the clause limiting cruise lines liability for independent physician contractors.

[Sparkygirl]

Glad to hear your daughter made a full recovery. What a scary time that must have been!

 

 

 

Harriet

 

 

Thank you it was incredibly scary but knew we were in awesome hands! We just last month sailed with the hotel director who was the asst hotel director when my daughter hurt herself. It was a reunion cruise for us and healing to get our feet wet. I still can't bring myself to sail the same ship again but am sailing the sister ship with the exact same slide she fell on next year.

 

 

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[newmexicoNita]

I'll probably get flamed for this, let put on a fireproof suit real quick.

 

I don't know the circumstances, but what exactly would the cruise line owe someone that tripped for not seeing some cleaning supplies on the floor? If we can sue for not paying attention.....I've missed out on millions by being aware of my surroundings (that's discrimination against us that look where we are walking).

 

Maybe there were extenuating circumstances, but on the surface I don't think people should be rewarded for their own negligence. No offense is intended to the OP, I just think people shouldn't need babysitting. You should be aware of what is in your path of travel, whether you are walking, running, driving, or piloting a spaceship.

 

On the other hand, OP, they should give you anything they promised. Good luck.

 

this is just how I saw it when I posted a couple of days ago. Accidents do happen. I do agree, if OP was promised something they should get it. Other than that get over it. When hubby tripped over the lounge we could have carried on, but we didn't. NCL made sure he was ok, treated him for his injuries and that was all we expected.

[Gaprofitt]

Let it go and move on...

[LMaxwell]

OP - What have you done to get what NCL verbally told you that you would receive? Do you have their promise in writing? Have you sent any certified letters to NCL? Were you checked out by your doctor upon returning home? Did you contact your trip insurance about reimbursement for portions of the cruise that you missed out on?

 

What does being a CC member have to do with anything at all? This is an independent chat forum and carries no weight with any cruise line.

 

I won't debate IF you are owed or not, if the company agreed to some credit they should make good on it. If they have not it is up to you to pursue it further. I was promised a credit on a RCI ship and told them I wanted it in writing; within 24 hours I had the promise on company letterhead. Anything else is just he said / she said.

[azappraiser]

So if I understand correctly' date=' you are merely seeking the future credit you were promised? It seems to me that legal fees would likely wash this. The cruise contracts are typically written in such a way that the carrier has zero responsibility for any sort of complaint, it then takes a legal pro to fight the terms of the contract. [i']This is typically cost prohibitive[/i].

 

Talk is cheap... until you hire a LAWYER!