Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) won a four-week jury trial, as on October 20, a jury convened in the Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida awarded NCL $159 million in its lawsuit against ABB, and ABB OY, claiming fraudulent and negligent misrepresentations and omissions ABB made about its propulsion systems (Azipods) that are used aboard many of NCL’s cruise ships.
The suit alleged that ABB purposefully misrepresented the reliability and safety of its Azipods, leading NCL to suffer Azipod failures. These failures caused NCL to lose propulsion and steering during voyages.
The final award includes $31.75 million in compensatory damages, plus an additional $31.75 million in punitive damages against ABB OY and $95.25 million in punitive damages against ABB Inc.
This is a case about fraud and negligent misrepresentation and omissions that ruined the cruises of tens of thousands of passengers and damaged NCL’s business
said Holland & Knight Partner Alex M. Gonzalez.
He also added that “the defendants knew that they had a problem with a critical component that impacted the safety of countless passengers and crew, and they hid and lied about it.”
This verdict sends an important message that you can’t conceal or misrepresent critical information from customers like NCL and other cruise lines. NCL feels fully vindicated by this verdict
