Hammers' Law amends title 46 of the U.S. Code to extend liability limitations for aviation accidents to cruise ship voyages and defines key terms like "cruise ship" and "nonpecuniary damages."
Don Bacon
Representative
NE-2
Hammers' Law amends title 46 of the United States Code to extend liability limitations for commercial aviation accidents to cruise ship voyages. It defines "cruise ship" and "nonpecuniary damages" within this context. The law updates the section heading and table of sections to reflect these changes.
Hammers' Law Extends Aviation Damage Caps to Cruise Ships, Limiting Passenger Compensation for Non-Financial Losses
This bill section, dubbed 'Hammers' Law,' makes a significant tweak to maritime law, specifically Section 30307 of Title 46, U.S. Code. Previously, this section primarily dealt with limitations on damages in commercial aviation accidents. This bill expands those same limitations to cover incidents happening on 'cruise ship voyages.' It introduces definitions for 'cruise ship' (basically, large passenger vessels sailing from the U.S.) and 'nonpecuniary damages,' which are defined as compensation for loss of care, comfort, and companionship.
Setting Sail with New Limits
So, what does this actually mean if you're planning a cruise? The core change here is extending existing damage limitations, previously focused on air travel tragedies, to the high seas for cruise passengers. Specifically, it targets 'nonpecuniary damages.' Think of these as compensation for the profound personal losses that don't have a direct price tag – the loss of a loved one's companionship, care, or comfort after a tragic incident. Under this bill, the ability to recover these types of damages in certain cruise ship incidents could be significantly restricted, mirroring the rules already in place for aviation accidents under specific circumstances detailed in the existing Section 30307.
Who Feels the Waves?
This change directly impacts cruise ship passengers and their families. If a serious incident occurs due to negligence on a cruise covered by this law, victims and their families might find their ability to seek full compensation for the human cost – the grief, the loss of companionship – legally limited. While the bill doesn't explicitly state the reason for the change, the practical effect is a reduction in the potential financial liability for cruise lines in certain catastrophic situations. This essentially aligns the liability rules for cruise lines more closely with those for airlines in specific scenarios governed by the Death on the High Seas Act framework, potentially shielding cruise companies from significant payouts related to non-financial suffering but removing a layer of legal recourse for passengers facing devastating personal losses.