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A former guest of Ruby Princess has filed a lawsuit against Princess Cruises due to alleged negligence.
The passenger tripped on ribbons in one of the main dining rooms, which resulted in a nasty fall.
The guest feels that Princess Cruises is to blame because the ribbons should have been cleaned up.
What should have been a lovely dinner onboard Ruby Princess turned into a life-changing injury, and the impacted guest thinks that Princess Cruises is to blame.
Lucy Gero filed a lawsuit against the Carnival-owned brand in federal court on February 19, 2026, in which her legal team accuses the brand of three counts of negligence.
Per the claim, Gero was walking in the Michelangelo Dining Room on Deck 5 of the Grand-class ship on March 4, 2025.
This is where she tripped and fell due to ribbons that were left on the floor by crew members. For context, Cruise Hive has previously seen the crew break out ribbons for holiday sailings or to commemorate special occasions.
“On or about March 4, 2025, GERO was carefully walking in the dining room on Deck 5, when [she] tripped and fell on ribbons left on the floor by PRINCESS’s crew members,” the lawsuit alleges.
The Pennsylvania resident says that she sustained significant injuries in the fall, including a torn meniscus in her right knee. Her injury required surgery and has resulted in chronic pain and mobility loss.
Is Princess Cruises to Blame?
According to Gero, the cruise line should be held responsible for her injuries because the ribbons should not have been left on the floor.
Gero also alleges that the ribbons were not easily visible because of inadequate lighting and because they got lost in the busy pattern on the carpet.
“The ribbons were not adequately visible to passengers, including GERO, walking in the area, and it lacked adequate warning and/or color contrast to bring the tripping hazard to the attention of passengers,” the claim states.
Additionally, crew members in the near vicinity allegedly failed to warn Gero of the hazard.
Ruby Princess Cruise Ship (Photo Credit: Ritu Manoj Jethani)
“There were PRINCESS crew members in the subject area within 10-15 feet…the crew members failed to warn GERO of the ribbons and failed to repair the same or block off the area prior to GERO tripping on it,” the claim continued.
The exact location of the crew members, who most likely had their attention occupied by running a busy dinner service, has not been confirmed by the cruise line.
Finally, the plaintiff claims that Princess has its own internal policy requiring staff to inspect areas for cleanliness and safety hazards at regular intervals (such as every 15 minutes), and did not follow proper protocol in this case.
The existence of this policy and what it specifically entails has not been confirmed by the cruise line.
Princess Stays Silent…At Least So Far
At this time, Princess Cruises has not commented publicly on the lawsuit. However, it’s important to remember that there are always two sides to every story.
Additionally, security footage of the Michelangelo Dining Room, which should have had cameras rolling during the incident, has not been publicly released. This footage could very well confirm or debunk Gero’s claim.
It’s also worth noting that the 3,080-guest ship has continued to operate normally since the incident, and no similar issues have been reported.
Ruby Princess is currently operating sailings to Hawaii, the Mexican Riviera, and up the West Coast from San Francisco, California.
This also isn’t Princess Cruises’ first rodeo with lawsuits. As recently as December 2025, Cruise Hive reported on a lawsuit that was filed after a passenger was injured when a chair broke in one of the main theaters.
In November 2025, another injury lawsuit was filed after a guest slipped on a greasy substance while using the stairs onboard Enchanted Princess.
Unfortunately, lawsuits are simply an inevitable part of operating a customer-facing business. Princess is prepared for this and has access to its own team of legal resources, as well as Carnival Corporation’s legal team.
Dining and Cooking