Passengers sue cruise line for allegedly concealing information

Thursday, April 9, 2020

Passengers have sued Carnival for negligent misconduct after it  allegedly concealed information regarding the spread of coronavirus onboard one of its ships.

As soon as the first Covid-19 cases had been detected onboard the Costa Luminosa, which set sail from Fort Lauderdale for a 20-day Transatlantic cruise on 5 March the company was accused of blocking off access to news channels in guests’ staterooms. It failed to implement quarantine measures.

Paul turner on behalf of the 2,000 guests who had sailed on the Luminosa filed a class-action lawsuit in Miami.

The lawsuit read as -Costa’s knowing, intentional and reckless conduct subjects Costa to the imposition of punitive damages.This voyage set sail knowing it was a virtual certainty that there would be an outbreak, similar, if not identical, to those which two Princess ships had already very publicly faced.This callous disregard for the safety and well-being of its passengers must be answered for.

Customers had been told that there was no cause for concern, alleges the lawsuit, and that if they cancelled they would not be entitled to a refund.

The first passengers became ill – an elderly couple from northern Italy. This happened after three days the ship set sail.

They were taken to hospital when the Luminosa docked in Puerto Rico on 8 March and later died, having tested positive for Covid-19.Another Italian national was also taken along.

The lawsuit claims that no measures were taken on the ship after their removal. The  passengers were  taken across the  Atlantic in a ticking coronavirus time bomb.

The lawsuit also alleges that after the liner’s management found out that all three Italian passengers had tested positive for coronavirus, they waited a full day to inform everyone else onboard.

After the revelation, letters were slipped under guests’ doors at midnight on 14 March. There were no instructions by Costa to isolate or quarantine to avoid the known and significant actual risk of contracting the coronavirus.

Passengers were allowed unfettered access to the pools, gym, and buffets the entire time, which further put passengers at an actual risk of exposure to coronavirus. It was noted that more people were falling ill. Until the evening of 15 March passengers were not told to self-isolate in their rooms and the guests were kept in the dark after news channels were blocked onboard.

Media outlets were reporting about the coronavirus issues on the Costa Luminosa before Costa was informing its passengers. On 19 March passengers finally disembarked in Marseille, France, where the lawsuit alleges they were packed into buses, flouting social distancing rules, before being flown home.

It was discovered that about 75 passengers have since tested positive for coronavirus, while seven of those who were onboard the Luminosa have die.

« Back to Page

• Germany puts visa rejection appeals on hold for Türkiye, China and Morocco

• Macau imposes stringent COVID-19 rules

• Outbound Chinese tourists travel sees huge drop in post pandemic

• Tourism in Cologne: Recovery and normalisation in the 2nd half of 2021

• More than 5,000 flights have been cancelled worldwide this Christmas weekend