Miami Slip & Fall on Cruise Ship Attorneys

Slip and falls are the most common causes of injury on cruise ships. Each year, hundreds of passengers, and even ship crewmembers, have slip and fall accidents due to improperly maintained or cleaned decks, floors, and carpeting. While slip and fall accident cases may seem clear and straightforward, they are not. Because these accidents are so common, the cruise lines have become skilled in defending them. We are familiar with the cruise lines’ defenses and we know how to overcome them.

Request your initial consultation by calling us at (305) 638-4143.

What You Need to Prove Your Miami Slip & Fall Case

The cruise line and its employees have a responsibility to use reasonable care under the circumstances to provide you and your family with a safe environment free from dangerous conditions. This means that to prove your case, you must show that the cruise line negligently or intentionally did not provide a reasonably safe environment. Furthermore, you must prove that this failure caused you to slip and fall, suffering injury.

Negligent Flooring Selection or Flooring Maintenance

Cruise ships are designed by the cruise lines and various shipbuilders and designers. Part of the design process involves selecting appropriate flooring surfaces for the various areas of the ship. When a cruise line implements an inappropriate flooring surface that is unreasonably slippery, the cruise line may be liable for causing a slip and fall.

For example, on the pool deck, the cruise line is well-aware that the area is going to be wet with pool water, sunscreen, spilled drinks, and rainwater. Therefore, the cruise line should install a flooring surface in this area that is designed to be very slip resistant when wet. However, oftentimes, the flooring surface selected is extremely slippery when wet. This results in many passengers slipping and falling even though they were being careful because the area was obviously wet. The flooring was just extremely slippery when wet.

Under these circumstances, even if there was a slippery when wet sign present at the scene, you would still have a case against the cruise line. Furthermore, it is likely that you are not the first person to have fallen as a result of this condition.

Failure to Appropriately Design Stairs

Cruise ships are required to use reasonable care in designing stairs and changes in elevation on their ships. This requires the cruise ship conform with reasonable and appropriate design customs that we are all familiar with on land.

These standards include:

• The tread and riser of the stairs be uniform from step to step.
• The treads are not excessively rounded.
• The top of the stairway be marked with a visual cue to alert people that a stairway is ahead.
• The stairs have a reasonable coefficient of friction.

Nevertheless, some ships have stairways that do not comply with reasonable design standards. When this occurs, some of the most important evidence will be the number of other people that had slip and fall or trip and fall accidents on the stairs before and after your incident. We have handled cases where dozens of people fell over a period of years due to a dangerously designed stair – and the cruise line never bothered to fix the stair.

Failure to Clean a Spill

The cruise line and its employees are required to use reasonable care to notice, warn, and clean dangerous conditions on their ships. Sometimes, the cruise line will admit that a puddle existed, and sometimes they won’t. However, in these cases, the biggest burden is proving that the cruise line knew, or should have known, of the dangerous spill.

Under maritime law, we must prove that the cruise line, through its employees either knew or should have known of the dangerous condition.

This can be done several ways, including:

• Through circumstantial evidence showing that the puddle or dangerous condition existed for a substantial period of time.
• Through showing that the cruise line employees were in the area but didn’t see the spill.
• Through showing that the employees saw the spill but did not timely act.
• Through showing that the spill was so large that the cruise line employees should have seen it and cleaned it.

Failure to Place a Warning Sign in a Safe Location

On cruise ships, the crew is usually instructed to mark a dangerous spill with a warning sign before beginning to clean the spill. We have handled cases where a crew member failed to place a warning sign in the correct area which resulted in a passenger slipping and falling and becoming severely injured. In this case, the crew member placed a caution sign in a main hallway to warn passengers but failed to realize that guests would be exiting an elevator and walking through the area of the spill without ever having the opportunity to see the caution sign.

Inadequate Lighting in High-Traffic Areas

Lighting plays a critical role in helping passengers safely navigate a cruise ship. Dim, flickering, or completely unlit areas—particularly near stairwells, corridors, and outdoor walkways—can create significant hazards that increase the risk of slips, trips, and falls. Cruise lines are expected to use reasonable care to ensure that all public areas are sufficiently illuminated, especially during the evening or in poor weather conditions.

We’ve handled cases where passengers slipped due to wet or uneven surfaces they couldn’t see because the lighting was inadequate. In these scenarios, the cruise line may be held liable for failing to maintain safe lighting conditions or for designing areas of the ship with poor visibility. Proving this often involves expert testimony, ship design plans, and inspection reports showing that lighting did not meet acceptable safety standards.

Delayed or Inadequate Medical Response After a Fall

Even when a fall occurs due to negligence, a cruise line can further compound a passenger’s injuries by providing inadequate or delayed medical attention. Cruise ships are required to maintain a reasonable standard of medical care onboard, including access to trained personnel and timely evaluation of injured passengers. If a delay in medical response exacerbates the injury—for example, causing a minor head injury to become a more serious traumatic brain injury—the cruise line may be held accountable for those additional damages.

We have handled cases where passengers laid on the floor for extended periods waiting for help, or were misdiagnosed by ship medical staff and denied necessary treatment until docking. Documentation from ship medical logs, expert medical opinions, and timelines of the response can all serve as powerful evidence in these cases.

How Do Cruise Lines Defend Slip & Fall Cases?

One of the most common tactics cruise lines use is to blame the passenger. Cruise lines routinely argue that the passenger was not paying attention when he or she slipped, or that the cause of the fall was “obvious.” They sometimes even argue that the passenger caused the slippery condition.

Cruise lines also use the passenger’s lack of knowledge about the cause of the slip to their advantage. When a passenger slips and falls due to unexpected liquid on the floor or deck, the passenger usually does not know how or when the liquid was spilled, where it came from, or even what the substance was. If the passenger knew this information, then the fall likely would have been avoided. After the passenger falls, it is typically too late to gather this information. The passenger is distracted by the trauma of the fall, is in too much pain, or is too confused to examine the condition. Once the passenger leaves the scene for medical care or to report what occurred to ship employees, the cruise line often dispatches employees to clean the area and put down a “wet floor” sign. Only after the area is cleaned will the cruise line take photographs to document the so-called scene of the accident.

Common Injuries From a Cruise Ship Slip and Fall Incident

Some of the most common injuries resulting from a slip and fall accident on a cruise ship include:

• Broken or fractured bones
• Head or traumatic brain injuries
• Ligament injuries
• Orthopedic injuries
• Spine and nerve damage
• Cuts and bruises

While not as common, injuries can also occur from slipping and falling overboard. These accidents can result in:

• Hypothermia (stage 1, 2, or 3)
• Immersion syndrome, which affects heart rhythm and function

We can help you recover compensation for any of these injuries and more.

How Long Do You Have to File a Cruise Ship Slip & Fall Claim?

Unlike typical personal injury cases on land, cruise ship injury claims are governed by federal maritime law and the specific terms of your passenger ticket contract—which often includes shortened deadlines to file a claim.

Most cruise lines, including major ones like Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian, require passengers to file a written notice of claim within six months of the incident and file a lawsuit within one year. These deadlines are typically printed in the fine print of your cruise ticket contract, and courts often strictly enforce them—even in serious injury cases.

If you miss these deadlines, you may be barred from recovering any compensation. That’s why it’s critical to contact a maritime injury lawyer as soon as possible after your fall to preserve your rights and initiate the proper legal steps.

Where Do You File a Cruise Injury Lawsuit?

Most passengers are surprised to learn that even if you were injured in international waters or a foreign country, you’ll likely need to file your lawsuit in federal court in Miami, Florida. This is because nearly every major cruise line—including Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, and MSC—designates Miami as the exclusive forum for filing lawsuits in the terms and conditions of their ticket contracts.

This makes it important to work with a law firm like ours that is based in Miami and deeply experienced in handling cruise ship injury cases in federal court. We’re familiar with the procedural nuances, local court rules, and aggressive tactics cruise lines use to get cases dismissed early.

What Compensation Can You Recover in a Cruise Slip & Fall Case?

If you’ve been injured in a slip and fall on a cruise ship due to negligence, you may be entitled to recover a wide range of economic and non-economic damages, including:

• Medical expenses (onboard and after disembarkation)
• Future medical care and rehabilitation
• Lost wages and loss of future earning capacity
• Pain and suffering
• Mental anguish and emotional distress
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Permanent disability or disfigurement

In wrongful death cases, surviving family members may also be eligible for compensation under the Death on the High Seas Act (DOHSA) or other applicable maritime statutes.

Our legal team will evaluate the full impact of your injuries, gather documentation, and work with medical and financial experts to ensure we seek the maximum compensation available under maritime law.

Frequently Asked Questions

What should I do immediately after a slip and fall on a cruise ship?

After a slip and fall, your priority should be seeking medical attention—even if your injuries seem minor. Then, report the incident to cruise ship staff and ensure a written report is filed. If possible, take photographs of the scene, your injuries, and any dangerous conditions. Also, try to get names and contact information for witnesses. Avoid giving recorded statements or signing anything without speaking to an attorney.

Do I need a lawyer to handle my cruise ship slip and fall claim?

Yes. Cruise lines have legal teams that are trained to deny or minimize claims. Maritime law is complex and differs significantly from standard personal injury law. A lawyer experienced in cruise ship injury cases can help you gather evidence, meet strict deadlines, and fight back against the cruise line’s defenses.

What if I don’t know what caused me to slip and fall?

It’s common for passengers not to know exactly what caused a fall, especially when the surface was unexpectedly slippery. Cruise lines often use this lack of knowledge to deny claims. However, an attorney can help investigate the scene, request surveillance footage, gather witness statements, and obtain maintenance records to determine the cause.

Can I still recover compensation if there was a “Wet Floor” sign present?

Yes, warning signs do not automatically shield the cruise line from liability. If the flooring was unreasonably slippery even with a sign, or if the sign was not clearly visible from where you entered the area, you may still have a valid claim. Cruise lines are required to do more than just warn—they must actively prevent dangerous conditions.

How much does it cost to hire a cruise ship injury lawyer?

Our firm works on a contingency fee basis, meaning you pay nothing upfront and we only get paid if we recover money for you. We also cover all the costs of investigating and litigating your case. If there’s no recovery, you owe us nothing.

We Are Here to Help You Defend Yourself

In these circumstances, you need an experienced cruise ship injury lawyer to handle your case and to thwart the cruise line’s defenses by discovering evidence in your favor including, but not limited to, video surveillance footage, photographs, witness statements, records of prior slip and fall accidents on the ship, cruise line safety audits, safety focus groups, engineer’s reports, and the cruise line’s “confidential” incident report that documents your slip and fall.

If you’ve been injured because of a slip and fall while on a cruise ship, you may be entitled to compensation. Contact our firm today at (305) 638-4143 to discuss the merits of your case.