Costa's Compensation Offer MERGED THREAD WITH COSTA LEGAL OFFER & 2 OTHER THREADS

[freagan]

The US Air flight hit an "Uncharted Flock of Canadian Geese"

 

The Concordia hit an "Uncharted Rock"

 

The US Air followed procedures for a safe evacuation.

 

The Concordia did not.

 

Perhaps if the Concordia had hit an Uncharted flock of geese, fell out of the water, and landed in the sky, they could pay less.:eek:

 

And if Costa only offered 5K all of that would be relevant. I put the figure out there as a yardstick to measure against for those trying to put their head around the amount offered because lets face it you can't measure offers like this in terms of value.

[LSEA]

Doesn't everyone have the hand out for some form of compensation?

 

Well, according to some posts on this thread it is just the Americans that do. Although the article does state that the law suit was filed by Codacons, one of Italy's best known consumer groups. Since the Italians will probably receive a portion of any settlement it seems the Americans are in good company.

[greg-nc]

I am wondering if you decide to go for lawsuit, will you pay back to travel insurance.. which could be 5 years later...

 

I can confirm that you will have to pay back your travel insurance if you get money from another source. We missed a cruise once because the plane did not fly. We were reimbursed from travel insurance but when the airline later reimbursed the cost of the flight we had to send this money to the travel insurance company. I expect this will hold true with the Costa settlement.

 

i also expect that if you take the settlement from Costa you will be signing away your rights for further compensation or suing.

[UCSD]

I can confirm that you will have to pay back your travel insurance if you get money from another source. We missed a cruise once because the plane did not fly. We were reimbursed from travel insurance but when the airline later reimbursed the cost of the flight we had to send this money to the travel insurance company. I expect this will hold true with the Costa settlement.

 

i also expect that if you take the settlement from Costa you will be signing away your rights for further compensation or suing.

so, that will be another battle between Costa and travel insurance on who should take the tab for "these inconveniences"?

[chipmaster]

trump change 14K times 4K passengers. The cost of the lawsuits from the dead will run likely 10 times that as human screwup has occured.

[freagan]

I can confirm that you will have to pay back your travel insurance if you get money from another source. We missed a cruise once because the plane did not fly. We were reimbursed from travel insurance but when the airline later reimbursed the cost of the flight we had to send this money to the travel insurance company. I expect this will hold true with the Costa settlement.

 

i also expect that if you take the settlement from Costa you will be signing away your rights for further compensation or suing.

 

You had to reimburse because it was cost for cost.

 

It would all depend on what the wording for the compensation is. If it mentions nothing about material loss or specifies that it is not for material loss then it wouldn't have to go to your insurance company.

[graphicguy]

So....what's to keep any of the passengers from rejecting Costa/Carnival's offer and making a counter offer? Say, $50K/pp?

 

$14K in jewelry, clothing, transportation costs, cruise costs, etc would be exhausted pretty quickly.

 

I usually take $3K with me just in cash when I cruise.

[griffy116]

While $14,000 is a lot of money, especially if you are factoring in a family of four there are several things that were brought up. The $14,000 doesn't include what you recover from your travel insurance, which might greatly reduce the amount. Then there's a point no one seems to mention. If you are one of the first to get into a lifeboat and all of your family members are there also, then your trauma wouldn't be the same as someone who was in the frantic struggle to get off a sinking ship while being held back or told to return to your cabin, you had to climb down a rope made of bed sheets to safety (as seen on videos) or you were so desperate you jumped and swam to safety, not to mention that families that got separated in the chaos. They are equalizing the damage for all who survived without injury, which includes the varying degrees of danger and trauma. All created and caused by more than negligence on the part of an employee of Costa. Everyone on the ship didn't end up on equal footing during this fiasco. All expenses and suffering wasn't the same, even if you weren't injured, I'm sure you were in great fear for your life and it doesn't mean you aren't grateful you survived. It means you want compensation for an idiot of theirs putting your life and the life of your family members in GRAVE danger.

[at_nyc]

So....what's to keep any of the passengers from rejecting Costa/Carnival's offer and making a counter offer? Say, $50K/pp

Nothing. Just the risk of not seeing any money for years.

[greg-nc]

In other news...

Cruise crew member sues over Italy disaster

 

This sounds like some lawyer in Chicago trying to get in on the action. The crew member is from Peru. "The lawsuit says Chicago is a proper venue because Carnival does substantial business in Illinois."

 

In the long run I think the suit will be tossed out by a judge stating that the venue is wrong... we will see. But it is interesting that lawyers are now stepping up and suing on the behalf of crew members who have a clause in their contracts that everything must be settled via arbitration.

[ghstudio]

Only time will tell, but Costa would have likely been better served to offer the full amount of the "contract limitation" to survivors and the full amount of the Athens agreement to those with injuries. Of course, they didn't want to do that, but it's highly likely that it will cost them at least that much for any case that gets to trial, irrespective of how much goes to the lawyers and how much goes to the passengers.

 

At this point, they are just trying to reduce the number of full contract claims they know they ultimately will have to pay. Hopefully any that take the deal do not have medical/mental issues in the future....that's the real risk for anyone who takes the offer now. I would advise any passenger considering this offer to take their time before signing....take as much time as Costa gives you....and don't be rushed to give away your rights to medical costs.

[nycruise]

"Costa Crociere SpA is offering uninjured passengers euro11,000 ($14,460) apiece to compensate them for lost baggage and psychological trauma after its cruise ship ran aground and capsized off Tuscany when the captain deviated from his route.

 

Costa, a unit of the world's biggest cruise operator, the Miami-based Carnival Corp., also said it would reimburse passengers the full costs of their cruise, travel expenses and any medical expenses sustained after the grounding.

 

The agreement was announced Friday after negotiations between Costa representatives and Italian consumer groups who say they represent 3,206 cruise ship passengers from 61 countries who suffered no physical harm when the Costa Concordia hit a reef on Jan. 13.

 

The deal does not apply to the hundreds of crew on the ship, the roughly 100 cases of people injured or the families who lost loved ones.

 

Passengers are free to pursue legal action on their own if they aren't satisfied with the deal."

 

Seems like a generous offer to me!

[Red Mini Stapler]

Costa Cruises has offered 11,000 euros ($14,500) in compensation to each of the more than 3,000 passengers aboard its liner that ran aground and capsized two weeks ago, Italian consumer groups said on Friday.

 

Each passenger on the Costa Concordia will also receive a refund on the cruise and the costs of their return home. The offer applies to all passengers, whether child or adult, who suffered no physical injuries.

Costa Cruises' U.S. parent company Carnival Plc is already facing legal action for compensation. Those accepting Friday's offer will have to agree to drop all future litigation, and receive payment within seven days.

 

http://news.yahoo.com/costa-offer-11-000-euros-passengers-concordia-093107165.html

 

if they're paying out 14,500 per passenger plus all the cruise & return trip (also per person) i don't think it's too bad of a deal

[debster11]

For the uninjured passengers I think this is a very generous offer. This on top of their cruise, air, medical bills? I would be satisfied with that.

[compman9]

I find it staggering that people on here think 11,000 euro is a fair offer.

 

The actions of the people in charge of this ship not only threatened the lives of all of its passengers, but led to the death of over 30 human beings.

 

The cruise line should not exist after the payout. They should not be allowed to trade.

 

A million euro each is not sufficient.

 

I am disgusted and horrified.

[pe4all]

If I suffered no physical or mental trauma, I would also accept this offer. However, most passengers will NOT accept this offer, and will probably end up in a class-action suite, or personal lawsuits. I just read about one family who's teen son is seeking psychiatric care due to nightmares, etc., and feel this offer is unacceptable. I am sure there are many, many post-traumatic syndrome things going on with many of the passengers- along with jewelry that was left in the safes and "lost", a lot of expensive clothes and electronics, etc. However, I also feel many passengers will feel entitled to much, much more than the cruise line is offering, and will sue for much higher numbers.

[mondello]

We didn't walk in their shoes or even swim 150+ yards to safety in some cases. I quit reading when I saw what the lawyers had to say. Its really hard to know how this tragic mess will affect all of those who survived. Uninjured does not mean unharmed.

[momtoabowhead]

We didn't walk in their shoes or even swim 150+ yards to safety in some cases. I quit reading when I saw what the lawyers had to say. Its really hard to know how this tragic mess will affect all of those who survived. Uninjured does not mean unharmed.

 

VWS. I doubt this compensation will mean anything to those that develop PTSD.

[debster11]

You all are so correct. I completely agree. If I had no side affects, no nightmares, injuries, PTSD or anything this would definately be a fair offer. BUT I wasn't there and I don't know how I would feel if I was.

[Indianaseadog]

At first glance seems to be fair. I THINK I'd be happy with this assuming no lasting harm for me or the family. It is hard for anybody that didnt experience this to say if it is fair or not. Unfortunately there will be people looking to "make money" off of this and that will make it harder on those that truely need the money to take care of any type of medical bills or mental trauma they continue to suffer.

[Crusing Nut]

First this offer is for those who have not suffered any injury.. so let's take all of those who have suffered an injury or trama out of the equation.

 

Second, it states that all expenses are to be reimbursed including:

flight fees

hotel fees

cruise fees

sail and sign cards

luggage

 

Third, if one had purchases and jewelry (which they can prove) onboard, why would you settle for 14,000 grand anyway.

 

If you have been made full by all the expenses being paid, do not have MEDICAL issues caused the grounding, I don't see why one wouldn't accept from $14,000 grand to $25,000. But a $165,000 or a million is just plain ridiculous. It should not matter if you got on the first life boat or climbed down a sheet ladder, you are a survivor. There are some were not.

[UCSD]

A million euro each is not sufficient.

 

I am disgusted and horrified.

 

There is nothing like GREED is there ..... :rolleyes:

say, one million dollars here...

only one-third ($333,333) goes to passenger's pocket.... that is not sufficient. :)

 

who will get most?

[freagan]

I find it staggering that people on here think 11,000 euro is a fair offer.

 

The actions of the people in charge of this ship not only threatened the lives of all of its passengers, but led to the death of over 30 human beings.

 

The cruise line should not exist after the payout. They should not be allowed to trade.

 

A million euro each is not sufficient.

 

I am disgusted and horrified.

 

What they are you referring to? Are you saying the average Joe who owns Carnival stock is responsible for this? Because of the company ceases to exist, it's there money that disappears, no one elses.

[Tranquil Waters]

Good for Costa to act quickly with a settlement amount that is decent for those not injured.

 

For the others, or those not willing to accept this offer, who proceed with class action or individual law suits, the ones to reap the biggest 'reward' will be the lawyers as another poster said. They would likely get at least 50% in fees while the clients would have their case tied up in court for years.

 

If it were me (thank god it wasn't), I'd take this offer and be thankful I had my life and my family and move on.

 

To those that lost loved ones or were injured, another matter entirely...they may have to sue for compensation unless Costa is working on a separate compensation for them.

 

It is a stretch to assume that the class action suit will necessarily go to trial. Suits are settled out of court all the time. And the amount that Costa will agree to pay to those that hold out for class action will be considerably more than $14,600. IMHO. This first offer is just to get as many passengers for as cheap as possible. Then the big number that comes later wont hurt them quite so much...

[NEWORLEANSCRUISER1]

I would take 100K at a min - the ship sunk and it was every person on their own. If the flooded areas were sealed off and you had a orderly removal from the ship then 14K would work.