BloomLegal’s entry into representing cruise line injury victims brings with it all sorts of interesting tidbits of information, such as:

1.  Cruise Ships aren’t Made in U.S.A.  While it may sound down-right unpatriotic that most of the cruise ships fly the flags of foreign countries, not the Stars and Stripes, it’s partially due to American law and the U.S. marketplace that this occurs.  For almost a century, federal laws have existed to protect U.S. cruise-ship builders by requiring that cruise ships sailing entirely between U.S. ports — with no stops in any foreign port — must be built in the United States, and both owned and operated by Americans.  (The laws are the Jones Act of 1920 and the Passenger Vessel Services Act of 1886.) 

Today’s reality is that no big cruise ship has been built in America since Eisenhower was president, and no large cruise ships built in the U.S. are even on the seas today.  Cruise ships simply aren’t built in the U.S., and under these existing federal laws, they’ve got to have at least one foreign port stop if they are otherwise sailing between U.S. ports of call.  

What does this mean to you?  Foreign law — not U.S. law — may well impact any incident or injury that occurs during your cruise vacation. 

2.  What You Pay Depends Upon When You Buy.  The best cruise vacation deals can be found either as “early bird” specials (5-6 months in advance) or as last minute bookings (within 2 weeks of departure).  You can save 50-75% this way. 

It’s entirely legal for the same cruise package to cost vastly different sums for passengers on the same ship, in neighboring cabins. 

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 Thinking of taking a cruise, leaving New Orleans for a sweet spin through the Caribbean? 

Have you seen those inciting ads — 75% off vacation packages for a long weekend, or even a couple of weeks? 

Heck, Affordable Tours is offering a 4-day cruise on Carnival’s Fantasy cruise ship through the Caribbean and with a Mexico stop or two, all for $250! (It leaves February 28th and gets back March 3d, if you’re interested ….)

Lots of people are taking advantage of these deals — and packing in the added bonus of a New Orleans holiday before jumping on board a Carnival or Royal Caribbean or Norwegian cruise ship and heading out to sea…. We’re almost back at pre-Katrina vacation volume.

In fact, Western Caribbean cruises are the most popular packages being sold today, and New Orleans is one of the most popular ports for Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian Cruise Lines’ Caribbean vacations.

And yet, no one is paying much attention to the sobering realities.

Did you know …

–  you may not be protected by American law, or U.S. authorities, once you are aboard ship and underway?

Almost every cruise ship is registered in a foreign country, and flies a flag of that nation - not the United States.  The laws of that country, as well as international treaties, may decide your claim, not the federal or state law you may assume applies.  At least the cruise line will argue this to be the case.

–  serious crimes occur onboard everyday — including sexual assaults, thefts, even unexplained disappearances?

Your risk of being raped is reportedly higher on a cruise ship than in any major American city, according to the International Cruise Victims organization. 

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