A Portuguese waitress has won €3.5 million in damages for being made to work for 10 days on a Disney cruise ship while suffering three broken ribs.
Maria Ana Reis Martins, now 39, had no idea of her injuries. Explains the Miami Herald, she was hit by a car while on shore in Nassau in 2013, and when she returned to the ship, the onboard medical team ‘failed to diagnose her fractures and found she was fit for work’.
So Martins “continued to serve tables for 10 days” – until a doctor in Florida “found she had broken three of her ribs, and the company sent her home to Portugal to receive treatment for five months”.
Martins returned to her job as ‘a dining room server’ the following year, “but had to leave only a month later after complaining of pain in her ribs”.
Shortly afterwards she decided to sue her former employers, for negligence and failure to provide adequate medical care.
Disney Cruise Line argued that it had fulfilled its duties under maritime law. But a jury didn’t see it that way. The court heard that Martins’ ordeal had left her with neurological damage.
“Jurors found that Disney Cruise Line had to pay Martins $1 million for pain and suffering, $2 million for lost earnings and $1 million as punishment”, said the Herald, adding that “the jury attributed 70% of negligence associated with Martins’ injury to the company and 30% to her”. In other words, damages could have been higher if Disney Cruise Line had been found to be wholly to blame.
The verdict marks the first jury trial against Disney Cruise Line for the personal injury of a ship worker, Martins lawyer Julio Alaya told reporters.
And so far, there is no indication that the company plans to lodge an appeal.
natasha.donn@algarveresident.com
