Food poisoning outbreaks on cruise ships – are we right to be worried?

Being struck down with food poisoning on board a cruise ship, can ruin your holiday, and cause lasting illness and trauma. Some of the most prevalent cases of illness aboard cruise ships happened last year, and were reported widely in the media.

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So is cruise ship sickness something we need to be worried about, or is it blown out of all proportion by a sensationalist media? Personally, having suffered food poisoning on land, I can´t think of anything worse than being struck down with norovirus onboard ship. With serious illnesses, such as MRSA, striking fear into the hearts people attending hospital in the UK, the last thing they need is to be worried about illness on holiday.

Passengers from the Diamond Princess, which was quarantined in Shanghai late last year, allege that the crew on board the ship were unprepared for the norovirus outbreak, and subsequently failed to prevent the spread of the illness. So can illness aboard a cruise ship be prevented? The truth is that often people contract the illness on land, and bring it onboard , but as many passengers are crammed into a fairly confined space, the illness spreads quickly. Sixty people were confined to their cabins on the Diamond Princess, after being struck down with the highly-contagious virus, and it was reported that another 400 people fell ill.

Many passengers fell ill during the second week of the trip, after visiting some of the specialist restaurants onboard. Norovirus strikes quickly and by the time you realise you are ill, you will probably be suffering severe symptoms of diarrhoea and vomiting. Problems can arise onboard cruise ships when an illness breaks out and affects many of the passengers, as there are only so many doctors onboard, which can cause delay in receiving treatment. It is common for single people to take holidays on cruise ships, and is all the more stressful for them when they become ill, and have to cope alone.

Passengers who became ill aboard the Diamond Princess also allege that nobody contacted them from the tour company on their return to the UK. If you have suffered holiday illness or injury onboard a cruise ship, through no fault of your own, it is vital you contact a personal injury solicitor as soon as you can. You will be advised of your rights and guided through the complicated personal illness and injury compensation claims process from start to finish.
If sanitisation and bad hygiene was to blame for the outbreak onboard the Diamond Princess, then the passengers were due to compensation from the tour company. Holidays, costing between £2,000 and £4,000, were completely ruined for many passengers.

Norovirus, which causes gastroenteritis, is spread by faecal contamination of food or water or person-to-person contact. It can spread quickly in enclosed spaces, especially if particular attention is not paid to personal hygiene. It causes vomiting and diarrhoea for up to three days, and usually resolves itself without treatment or long-term complications. Norovirus-related illnesses have been known, however to last for many months.

The Diamond Princess belongs to Princess Cruises, which is part of Carnival Corporation & PLC, the British-American global cruise company that owns P & O Cruises.
A Princess Cruises spokesman said at the time: “We have worked extensively with both international and local Public Health Authorities to develop comprehensive outbreak prevention and control policies and we do everything we can to protect the safety, health and comfort of our passengers.

“Unfortunately, norovirus is currently circulating widely throughout the Far East and we regret that an outbreak occurred on this occasion. Our investigation into the circumstances of the outbreak is ongoing and so we are unable to comment further at this time. We have received no formal legal claims in relation to this matter but any communication received will be dealt with as a priority.”

The major problem with suffering illness onboard a cruise ship is that it only takes one person to spread a virus to the rest of the ship. Whether the virus was contracted onboard or on land, it is of little consolation to sufferers. With so much negative publicity about norovirus and food poisoning onboard cruise ships, it would be hard to excuse any company or tour operator who did not ensure the thorough cleaning and disinfecting of the ship when an outbreak takes place. All crew should be thoroughly trained in how to deal with an outbreak of norovirus. The Health Protection Agency bought out guidelines for crew aboard cruise ships, detailing the actions they need to take should there be such an outbreak. There is no longer any excuse for staff onboard cruise ships to be ignorant of the norovirus facts.

Unfortunately, these outbreaks of norovirus show no signs of abating. If you have suffered an illness or personal injury onboard a cruise ship, that was not your fault, contact Farnworth Rose Personal Injury Solicitors as soon as possible.

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Claiming for holiday illness, injury or accidents can be difficult. Holiday claims expert, Anne Thomson of Farnworth Rose Personal Injury Solicitors, has over 20 years experience of dealing with clients who have fallen ill or sustained injuries abroad. Anne´s background and customer service skills ensure clients are dealt with in a professional and sympathetic manner. Her knowledge and expertise in the specialised area of travel law is second to none. Tour operators often offer clients less compensation than they deserve, and it is essential that you contact us before you accept any payment. Your claim will then be assessed and you will be advised by Anne and her highly trained team how to proceed. For more information or to make a claim Call us FREE on 080001 54321, or fill in the claim form.