White Island class action against RCI
THE cruise sector is bracing itself for yet another mainstream media battering, with ABC’s
Four Corners program to tonight feature details of a class action against Royal Caribbean International (RCI) in relation to the 2019 White Island eruption (CW 10 Dec 2019).
Stacks Goudkamp has been hired by the group of passengers and their family members to pursue legal action against RCI for alleged negligence, breach of contract and breach of Australian consumer law.
In the program, plaintiffs will allege they were told “absolutely nothing” about the risks of an eruption, with Four Corners detailing “chaos and disorganisation” in the hours that followed the eruption.
New Zealand’s volcano monitoring service GNS Science had raised the alert level for White Island from one to two in the weeks before the eruption, which is the highest level it can be when it is not erupting.
“At the very least, RCI, which held itself out to be responsible for this tour, should have been monitoring this, and communicating with participants as to the risk, and giving them the choice, an informed choice to decide not to go because of this risk,” proposes Stacks Goudkamp lawyer Rita Yousef.
The program will also detail a delay in information about the eruption from the cruise line to guests, with some passengers alleging they only found out by turning on the television, and others maintaining RCI told them very little about the incident in the hours following.
RCI has since provided care and support to passengers, their families and the crew, the company said, with the New Zealand Government warning investigations into the tragedy could take more than a year.