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Princess Cruise Lines says a class action lawsuit it faces alleging negligence during the coronavirus outbreak should not move forward because passengers gave up their right to sue and the plaintiffs don’t have enough “commonality” to be certified as a Class.
Their customers accepted the “terms of a Passage Contract prior to boarding the Grand Princess, which expressly waived their rights to resolve any disputes through a class action,” Princess Cruise Lines’ owner said in a motion.
The legal maneuvering by Princess Cruise Lines is the latest in several legal actions it faces during the coronavirus outbreak.
Vacationers became plaintiffs in the Princess Cruise Lines class action lawsuit after experiencing “suffering, anguish, fright, horror, nervousness, grief, anxiety, worry, shock, humiliation and shame” during a weeks-long ordeal involving passengers infected with the coronavirus and the resulting quarantine on a military base.
Two travelers onboard the Carnival’s Grand Princess died from coronavirus infection, reports show. One was California’s first death from the outbreak. Out of the plaintiffs in this class action lawsuit, two were infected. One was reportedly hospitalized in intensive care.
“Defendants chose to place profits over people, including the safety of their passengers, crew, and the general public in continuing to operate business as usual,” the class action lawsuit contends. “Despite their knowledge of the actual—potentially lethal—risk to Plaintiffs and the Class.”
Plaintiffs sailed to Mexico on the Grand Princess on Feb. 11. On Feb. 19, the passengers say Princess Cruise Lines were “aware of at least one passenger” with a coronavirus infection.
Carnival’s Chief Medical Officer, Grant Tarling, reported an infected passenger came into the ship’s medical center for treatment on Feb. 20, according to the class action lawsuit.
“Despite their knowledge regarding COVID-19, Defendants had no effective passenger medical screening methods in place at the time of boarding,” the plaintiffs said.
The Grand Princess returned to San Francisco on Feb. 21, with no communication to travelers about potential exposure to the coronavirus, according to the class action lawsuit.
Furthermore, 62 passengers from the Mexico trip stayed onboard and were never subject to “medical screening” or coronavirus “examination procedures,” the plaintiffs said, adding the ship was never sanitized between voyages.
The ship set sail to Hawaii the same day, eventually docking at “multiple” stops along the islands. On Feb. 25, Princess Cruise Lines emailed passengers who traveled to Mexico about possible coronavirus exposure. Plaintiffs said those who were onboard the Hawaii voyage were not included in this message.
The class action lawsuit claims Princess Cruise Lines waited until March 3 to implement coronavirus sanitizing protocols. A notice was sent to passengers March 4, the same day California’s Governor Gavin Newsom issued a state of emergency over the rising infections.
The emergency declaration was “spurred by the COVID-19 outbreak on the Grand Princess and the death of a passenger who had been on the Mexico trip,” plaintiffs said.
The situation prevented the Grand Princess from docking in San Francisco until March 9.
That’s when passengers were greeted by crews from the Centers for Disease Control wearing hazmat suits in the “middle of the night,” the plaintiffs said. From there, crew and passengers were sent to various military installations for a two-week quarantine.
The plaintiffs contend Princess Cruise Lines knew or should have known about the potential risk of coronavirus outbreaks onboard.
Plaintiffs point to a coronavirus outbreak onboard the Diamond Princess while docked in Japan in February. More than 700 passengers tested positive. The class action lawsuit alleges Princess Cruise Lines worked “to keep the fun going” by “encouraging [guests] to mingle.”
The Princess Cruise Lines class action lawsuit also points to a set of coronavirus guidelines tailored for the cruise industry sent in early February by the European Union. The recommendations included disembarking the infected and isolating those who came in close contact with the sick person.
Furthermore, Princess Cruise Lines allegedly continued to allow gatherings onboard and offered turn-down service until March 4.
Have you booked a cruise with Princess Cruise Lines? Let us know in the comments below.
Counsel for the plaintiffs in this class action lawsuit are Gretchen M. Nelson, Carlos F. Llinás Negret of Nelson & Fraenkel LLP, Mary E. Alexander, Brendan D.S. Way of Mary Alexander & Associates, P.C.; Elizabeth J. Cabraser, Jonathan D. Selbin, Mark P. Chalos of Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, LLP; Joseph G. Sauder of Sauder Schelkopf LLC.
The Princess Cruise Lines Class Action Lawsuit is Archer, et al. v. Carnival Corporation, et al., Case No. 2:20-cv-04203, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
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