Your child was hurt on a cruise: what is different about the claim?

Last updated October 4, 2026.

Three things change when the injured passenger is a child: the notice deadline, who can act for the child, and how a settlement is approved. Federal law pauses the ticket's deadline for giving written notice of a minor's claim, but not the deadline for filing a lawsuit (46 U.S.C. 30526(d)). Settling a child's claim also has stricter rules than settling an adult's, and once a lawsuit is filed, Florida law requires court approval.

Children are hurt on cruises in pools and on water slides, in kids' clubs, on stairs and balconies, and on shore excursions. Whatever happened, the legal steps that follow are not quite the same as for an adult. This page explains those differences for parents and guardians. For the wider picture, see our overview of cruise injury claims.

How does a child's claim work, step by step?

1. Medical care and records. Get your child treated, starting at the ship's medical center if that is where care began, and keep every record.
2. Read the ticket. The passenger ticket contract sets the notice and lawsuit deadlines and names the court. Federal law limits how short they can be.
3. Work out the two clocks. For a minor, the notice period can be paused; the lawsuit period is not paused by the same rule. Plan around the lawsuit deadline.
4. Decide who acts for the child. A parent usually acts as natural guardian; in some cases a court-appointed guardian or a guardian ad litem is needed.
5. Send written notice and preserve evidence. Notify the cruise line in writing and ask it to keep video and records.
6. File suit if needed. Most cruise tickets require suit in federal court in Miami, where a minor may sue through a representative.
7. Settlement approval. Any settlement of a child's claim must follow the rules on guardianship and court approval described below.

Does the deadline change for a child?

Partly. Section 30526(d) says that if a claimant is a minor, any period the contract gives for providing notice of the claim is tolled until the earlier of two dates: the date a legal representative is appointed for the minor, or 3 years after the injury. Read literally, the pause covers notice only. The same section allows a ticket to set the lawsuit deadline as short as 1 year after the injury, and nothing in subsection (d) pauses that period.

So the safest plan is to treat the ticket's lawsuit deadline as running from the day your child was hurt, and to send written notice well before it anyway. Our page on how to give a cruise line written notice of your claim explains the notice step. For both clocks side by side, read why the clock is already running on cruise claims. Note also that if a court appoints a legal representative for your child, the notice pause ends on that date.

Who can bring the claim for a child?

In federal court, Rule 17(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure lets a general guardian, a committee, a conservator or a like fiduciary sue on behalf of a minor. A minor without a duly appointed representative may sue through a next friend or a guardian ad litem, and the court must appoint a guardian ad litem, or issue another order, to protect a minor who is unrepresented in the case.

Rule 17(b)(1) adds that an individual's capacity to sue is determined by the law of the individual's domicile. For a family living in Ohio or Texas, that home state's law can matter, even though the case is in Miami. For a Florida family, Florida law applies, and it is set out next.

What does Florida law say about settling a child's claim?

Under Florida Statutes section 744.301(1), both parents jointly are the natural guardians of their children during minority, with rules for divorced parents and other situations. Section 744.301(2) lets natural guardians settle a claim for injury to their minor child, and collect and manage the proceeds, without court appointment, authority or bond, if the amounts received do not exceed $15,000 in total.

Above that amount, section 744.387(2) requires a legal guardianship when the net settlement to the minor exceeds $15,000. And under section 744.387(3)(a), once a lawsuit has been filed on behalf of a minor, no settlement is effective unless the court hearing the case approves it. The court can then authorize the guardians to collect the money and sign the release, and must require a guardian of the property if the net amount exceeds $15,000 and none has been appointed.

These rules protect the child. They also mean that a settlement reached at mediation in a cruise injury case involving a child is not final until the required approvals are in place.

What changes the answer?

Where your family lives

Capacity to sue follows the law of the child's domicile under Rule 17(b)(1), so a family from another state or country may face different guardianship requirements than a Florida family.

Whether a waiver was signed

Florida law allows natural guardians to waive, in advance, a child's claims against a commercial activity provider for injuries from inherent risks of the activity, but only if the waiver contains a specific notice in large uppercase type and waives no more than the statute allows (Fla. Stat. 744.301(3)). A separate federal rule makes void any cruise ticket clause that limits the cruise line's liability for injury caused by its negligence on voyages touching a U.S. port; see whether a cruise ticket can limit what the cruise line pays.

Whether the injury happened on a shore excursion

Tours run by local companies raise separate questions about who is responsible. Our page on shore excursion injuries covers them.

Whether the child died

The notice pause in 30526(d) also covers wrongful death claims. Families facing a loss can read what happens first after a family member dies on a cruise.

The type of incident

Pool and water incidents are covered on our page about overboard and drowning cases, which includes questions about lifeguards and pool supervision.

What does this look like in practice?

For example, imagine a 9-year-old from Georgia who fractures a wrist on a ship's water slide on July 10. The parents get treatment on board and at home, and they read the ticket: written notice within 6 months, suit within 1 year, in Miami. Because the child is a minor, the notice period is paused, but the parents send written notice in September anyway, with a request that the cruise line keep the slide area video and maintenance records.

Months later, the cruise line offers to settle before any lawsuit is filed. Because the family lives in Georgia, their lawyer checks Georgia's rules on settling a minor's claim. Had a lawsuit already been filed and Florida law applied, the settlement would need the approval of the court hearing the case, and a legal guardianship if the net amount to the child were over $15,000. Either way, the parents keep the 1-year lawsuit deadline on the calendar until the claim is fully resolved.

This example is hypothetical, not a past case or a result.

What mistakes do parents make?

• Assuming a child's deadlines are all paused. The federal pause covers the notice period, not the lawsuit period.
• Letting the child give a recorded statement. Speak with a lawyer before anyone records your child's account.
• Not keeping copies of anything signed. Kids' club registrations, activity waivers and excursion forms may matter later.
• Accepting a quick settlement without checking approval rules. A settlement that ignores guardianship or court approval requirements may not be effective.
• Waiting to request video. Covered ships must keep surveillance video for at least 20 days; see how to get the cruise line's video before it disappears.

What should you do this week?

1. Collect every medical record and bill, including from the ship's medical center.
2. Write down what happened, where, when and who was supervising, while your child's and your memories are fresh.
3. Gather photos, videos and the names of other parents, staff and lifeguards who were present.
4. Find the notice and lawsuit deadlines in your ticket and calendar both.
5. Send written notice of the claim and a written request to preserve video and records. Our checklist on what to do after an injury on a cruise covers the rest.
6. Keep copies of anything you or your child signed on board or for an excursion.

Frequently asked questions

Can I file the claim myself as the parent?

In federal court, a minor sues through a representative under Rule 17(c), such as a guardian, or a next friend or guardian ad litem where there is no appointed representative. Your lawyer will choose the right way to bring the claim for your child.

Is my own claim for my child's medical bills separate?

Parents often pay the bills, so their losses are usually part of the discussion. How those amounts are claimed depends on the law that applies, which a lawyer can review with you.

Does the 3-year notice pause mean we can wait 3 years to sue?

No. The pause applies to the period for giving notice. The ticket's lawsuit deadline, which can be as short as 1 year after the injury, is not paused by that rule.

Does a court have to approve every settlement for a child?

Under Florida law, once a lawsuit has been filed, a minor's settlement is effective only with approval of the court hearing the case. Before suit, natural guardians may settle up to $15,000 without appointment; above that, a legal guardianship is required. Other states have their own rules.

Where would the case be heard?

Most cruise tickets require suit in federal court in Miami. See what happens after you file a cruise injury lawsuit in Miami federal court.

This page is general information, not legal advice. Rules for minors' claims depend on where your family lives and the facts. Contact a lawyer about your specific situation.