The Costa Concordia when it was sinking near the island of Giglio in 2012
THE Spanish Supreme Court has awarded 22 passengers who were aboard the Costa Concordia cruise liner when it sank in 2012 moral damages amounting to 12,000 euros (US$13,500).
They were among 177 Spanish citizens who were rescued from the ship when it ran into rocks near the Italian island of Giglio during the night, resulting in the loss of 32 lives.
The Association of Spaniards Affected by Concordia 2012 was consequently formed by the 177 rescued Spaniards to seek a much higher compensation than that offered by the ship’s operators, Costa Crociere, for their physical and moral suffering.
They had asked for 60,000 euros in compensation each, but the Spanish Supreme Court, the highest appeal court in Spain, upheld a lower court decision to award just 1,000 euros more than Costa Crociere’s offer of 11,000 euros per passenger.
In a statement, the appeal judge said the lower court had been correct in deciding that all passengers should be treated equally in compensation for moral damages.
However, 17 of the rescued will receive varying additional levels of compensation for physical injuries suffered while escaping the sinking ship, as verified by medical reports prepared by Costa Crociere’s doctors.
The Italian captain of the Costa Concordia was given a jail sentence of 16 years for manslaughter in February 2015, after acknowledging he steered the ship too close to the island.
