Are you dealing with painful physical injuries, overwhelming financial costs, and debilitating emotional distress because of a recent cruise ship accident in St. Petersburg, Florida? Don’t hesitate to call Winters & Yonker Personal Injury Lawyers. Our experienced St. Petersburg cruise ship accident lawyers can help you take legal action and demand accountability from negligent parties.
At Winters & Yonker Personal Injury Lawyers, we’ve dedicated our careers to helping clients move forward after life-changing accidents. Since 2001, our award-winning Florida litigators have been trusted by cruise ship injury victims and families to take on powerful corporations and fight for financial justice. Our case results speak volumes, with tens of millions of dollars recovered.
Benefit from a respected legal team with 119+ years of collective experience and an unrivaled reputation for achieving top results. Contact us and schedule a free consultation by calling our St. Petersburg, FL law office at (727) 314-5988 today.
How Winters & Yonker Personal Injury Lawyers Can Help If You’ve Been Injured on a Cruise Ship in St. Petersburg, FL
The cruise line won’t want to take responsibility for the accident. Its insurance company will search for any reason to deny your claim or limit your financial recovery.
Don’t settle for less than you deserve. Level the playing field and force a fair fight by turning to our top-rated St. Petersburg personal injury lawyers for help.
Our law firm is here to not only help you win your case, but also provide the invaluable support and guidance you need during this difficult time in your life.
We’ll handle all aspects of your cruise ship accident claim, which will give you the time you need to focus on getting better.
Trust us to:
- Review results of internal investigations conducted by the cruise line
- Promptly launch an independent inquiry into the circumstances of your cruise ship accident
- Carefully evaluate ship maintenance records, company hiring and training policies, safety violations, complaints of misconduct, photographs, video footage, medical records, and other evidence obtained through the discovery process
- Interview witnesses, cruise ship staff members, and other individuals with information about your case
- Work closely with highly-regarded expert witnesses as we calculate what your cruise ship accident case might be worth
- Handle all communications with the cruise line, its insurance company, and other defendants in your case
- Force meaningful negotiations as we seek a maximum settlement on your behalf
- Offer guidance and advice when you’re asked to decide whether or not to accept a settlement offer
- Fight to get you a life-changing verdict at trial if the cruise line refuses to accept responsibility for the accident and your injuries
Financial stress can escalate after a cruise ship accident. Hiring an attorney to help you fight back and get the compensation you deserve should make life easier, not more difficult. That’s why we offer contingent legal representation.
You only pay if our cruise ship accident attorneys in St. Petersburg, FL win your case.
Call our law firm to learn more, and schedule a free initial consultation now.
Are Cruise Ship Accidents Common?
Every year, tens of millions of people go on cruises departing from various ports around the United States.
Florida is perhaps the most popular place to board a cruise ship. In 2019, 8.9 million people – roughly 59 percent of all cruise ship passengers – boarded ships in the Port of Tampa and other ports in the Sunshine State.
Unfortunately, everyone who embarks on a cruise from St. Petersburg doesn’t have the vacation of their dreams. Cruise ship accidents are fairly common.
Research suggests that nearly 500 cruise ship accidents have been reported since 2005.
Additional data suggests that there have been at least 620 cruise ship fatalities between 2000 and 2019.
According to Cruisemapper.com, there were at least 223 cruise ship accidents, injuries, and/or deaths reported in 2022.
Types of Cruise Ship Accident Cases We Handle
Cruise ships are essentially a combination of hotels, amusement parks, and casinos at sea. There are countless attractions to entertain guests on board during a voyage. As a result, there are countless ways in which guests can potentially get hurt on cruise liners in Florida.
At Winters & Yonker Personal Injury Lawyers, we advocate for clients who have been injured in all types of cruise ship accidents, including:
- Slip and fall accidents
- Swimming pool accidents
- Assault and battery
- Sexual assault
- Fires and explosions
- Elevator accidents
- Falls from heights
- Falling overboard
- Drowning accidents
- Infection and disease outbreaks
- Ship grounding accidents
- Falling object accidents
If you’ve been injured on a cruise ship in St. Petersburg, FL, we can help. Call us to discuss the specific details of your case and discover how our cruise ship accident attorneys can help you fight back.
How Do I Prove Negligence in a St. Petersburg Cruise Ship Accident Case?
Most cruise ship accident lawsuits are based on negligence. The cruise liner has a responsibility to provide a safe environment for you and your family while you’re on board the ship.
This means checking for slip and fall hazards regularly, ensuring that pools and attractions are in proper working condition, keeping dangerous tools and equipment out of the hands of young children, installing appropriate safety barriers and safeguards, and maintaining regular oversight over cruise ship operations.
If the cruise line allows a dangerous condition to exist on the ship, it can be financially responsible if you get hurt.
To hold them accountable, you’ll need to prove that the cruise line (or another party) was negligent:
- Duty: The cruise line owed you a duty of care because you were lawfully on board the ship
- Breach: The cruise line allowed a dangerous condition to exist on the ship and failed to do anything to fix it or warn you about it
- Causation: You were injured because of this dangerous condition
- Damages: You’ve suffered medical bills, lost wages, disability, and/or other damages
Florida law requires you to prove your case by a preponderance of the evidence. In other words, a jury has to be convinced that your side of the story is more likely true than not.
What Types of Damages Are Available to Cruise Ship Accident Victims in St. Petersburg, Florida?
You can ask to recover both economic and non-economic damages when you file a cruise ship accident lawsuit in St. Petersburg, FL.
Economic damages are awarded to make up for accident-related financial costs, including:
- Current medical bills
- Future medical expenses
- Lost wages
- Disability
- Rehabilitation
- Nursing care
- Property damage
- Funeral expenses if a cruise ship accident is fatal
Non-economic damages are awarded to compensate for trauma that’s much more subjective, such as:
- Pain and suffering
- Chronic physical pain
- Loss of consortium
- Disfigurement
- Emotional distress
- Embarrassment
- Reduced quality of life
Expect the cruise line to downplay the seriousness of your injuries. Trust that our cruise ship accident attorneys in St. Petersburg won’t let the defendants dictate the terms of your case. We’ll carefully construct a legal claim that highlights your injuries and the ways in which your life has changed for the worse since your accident.
We’ll bring in experts to offer their valuable insight and support your fight for compensation. When it’s time to negotiate, we’ll engage in meaningful conversations and make it clear that lowball settlement offers won’t fly. Without a reasonable offer, our team will be fully prepared to bring your cruise ship accident lawsuit to trial.
Common Cruise Ship Accident Injuries
Depending on the type of accident in which you’re involved on a cruise ship, potential injuries include:
- Broken bones
- Cuts and lacerations
- Eye injury
- Tinnitus
- Concussion
- Brain injury
- Spinal cord injury
- Whiplash
- Neck injury
- Back injury
- Nerve damage
- Paralysis
- Internal organ damage
- Crushing injury
- Amputation
- Degloving injury
- Burn injury
- Soft tissue injury
- Catastrophic injury
- Wrongful death of a family member
Report your accident immediately, and then don’t hesitate to seek treatment from the team of on-board medical specialists. Not only will this help to reduce the risk of complications, but it will also ensure that your injuries are properly documented. If you file a lawsuit in the future, this record can help to prove causation and get you the compensation you deserve.
What is the Statute of Limitations for Florida Cruise Ship Accident Lawsuits?
When you buy a ticket to go on a cruise, you enter into a contract with the cruise line. The terms of this contract limit the amount of time you have to pursue compensation if you’re injured on board the ship.
While most personal injury lawsuits in Florida are subject to a two-year statute of limitations, you’ll generally only have one year to file a cruise ship accident injury claim.
You don’t want to let the statute of limitations expire. Once the deadline passes, your right to demand compensation will be lost forever.
Schedule a Free Case Evaluation With a Trusted St. Petersburg Cruise Ship Accident Lawyer
Were you injured in an accident on board a cruise ship in St. Petersburg, Florida? Contact Winters & Yonker Personal Injury Lawyers and discover how we can help you stand up, assert your rights, and demand the compensation you need to get back on your feet.
Our St. Petersburg cruise ship accident attorneys have 119+ years of collective experience and a proven ability to make a positive impact in the lives of clients like you.
We’ve won tens of millions in settlements and jury awards. Today, we’re ready to help you seek the best results in your cruise ship accident case. Contact us to set up a free consultation now.
