A man says a glass door slammed on his finger causing serious injury. He has since filed a lawsuit against the cruise ship industry giant Carnival related to the injury. The case has been filed in the U.S. District Court in Southern Florida. The man accuses Carnival of premises liability and negligence.
According to the lawsuit, the man was entering his cabin from the balcony when a heavy glass door slammed on his finger. The plaintiffs claim that the glass door was malfunctioning at the time and that Carnival employees either knew or should have known about the danger. Instead of warning the passenger about the danger, the staff exposed the passenger to a known danger that resulted in a severe injury to his finger. The plaintiff contends that a failure to properly calibrate the door regulator resulted in a foreseeable injury.
Premises liability and cruise ship lawsuits
90% of the lawsuits filed against cruise ships involve allegations of premises liability. Premises liability lawsuits are filed under a theory of negligence that requires the plaintiff to establish foreknowledge. When a plaintiff can establish that a danger to customers was foreseeable, they can further establish that the injury was preventable had the property owner exercised a reasonable amount of care.
In other cases, perhaps no one directly knew about a danger, but the potential for the danger existed and the employees were aware of this. Had they exercised ordinary care, they would have known about the danger and this would have prevented injury.
In this case, the plaintiff is contending that Carnival employees exposed him to a dangerous door that had the potential to swing closed abruptly. He contends that the door should have been fixed, removed, or cordoned off to prevent injury to customers. While a finger injury may not prevent him from enjoying the rest of his life, he’s not whole any longer either.
Now, you ask, how much will it cost a company to settle an action filed by an individual who lost a finger? The answer is probably somewhere between $10,000 and $1,000,000. Not a very satisfying answer, but much will depend on what sort of medical treatment you seek out. The loss of a bodily organ for the remainder of your life is typically compensated handsomely, particularly if you needed that finger for something you enjoyed, like bowling.
Chances are good that if your finger has to be amputated, you will be recovering six figures or more. If you’ve had surgery on your finger, then you could be into the six-figure range, but most cases would settle for high-five figures.
Talk to a Miami Cruise Ship Injury Attorney Today
Michael F. Guilford files lawsuits on behalf of individuals who are injured aboard cruise ships. Call a Miami admiralty & maritime lawyer at our office today to schedule a free consultation and learn more about how we can help.