Cruise Guest Blames Royal Caribbean After Tripping Over Parked Scooter in Casino

A cruise vacation is supposed to be the easy kind of crowded. Busy pool deck? Sure. Packed buffet at breakfast? Absolutely. But a lawsuit filed against Royal Caribbean says one guest’s sailing took a far more serious turn inside the casino, after an alleged fall involving a mobility scooter left in a public walkway.

At the center of the case is Jewel of the Seas, where former passenger Colleen Parsons says she was injured badly enough to need surgery. Instead of blaming the guests around her, she’s holding the cruise line responsible.

Parsons, who lives in Florida, filed suit against Royal Caribbean Group in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida on May 18, 2026. In the complaint, she accuses the company of negligence.

Court filings say the incident happened on June 22, 2025, while Parsons was sailing aboard Jewel of the Seas. She says she was walking through Casino Royale on Deck 6 when another passenger bumped into her in what she described as an overcrowded area, causing her to fall over a large electric mobility scooter that had allegedly been left in the walkway.

The filing does not say exactly how busy the casino was at that moment. Casino Royale on Jewel of the Seas spans about 6,459 square feet and includes roughly 195 slot machines and 12 gaming tables.

Rather than naming any nearby passengers in the case, Parsons is directing her claim at Royal Caribbean Group.

Her attorneys argue the cruise line “failed to maintain a safe environment” and did not warn guests about “a hazard in the walkway.” The lawsuit also alleges crew members failed to create or enforce proper safety procedures for operating and parking mobility scooters.

Parsons says she fractured her left wrist in the fall and later underwent surgery, which left scarring. She is seeking damages for medical costs, pain and suffering, lost earnings, and the lost enjoyment and financial value of the cruise.

Royal Caribbean has not publicly commented on the lawsuit.

For now, there does not appear to be any visible change to the casino setup as Jewel of the Seas continues sailing 3- and 4-night Caribbean and Bahamas itineraries from Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

What Royal Caribbean’s Scooter Policy Says

The lawsuit claims the ship was not kept reasonably safe, but Royal Caribbean does have written guidance covering mobility scooters.

According to the cruise line’s website, scooters must fit through a standard stateroom door and must be parked in a way that does not block shared spaces.

The policy states: “Mobility scooters must be stored and recharged in your stateroom so fire doors, corridors and elevator lobbies are kept clear for emergency evacuation. When parked throughout the ship, they must be parked out of the way to allow safe and easy access by other guests and crewmembers.”

In other words, scooters are not supposed to be left where they could interfere with foot traffic.

Jewel of the Seas sails with around 859 crew members and can carry up to 2,702 guests. On a ship that size, especially in busy public venues, enforcing every parking rule in real time is easier said than done.

Similar scooter rules are common across the industry, including on Carnival Cruise Line, Norwegian Cruise Line, Celebrity Cruises, Disney Cruise Line, and Princess Cruises.

Why Mobility Scooter Safety Keeps Coming Up

This isn’t the first recent cruise-related incident involving a mobility scooter.

In May, a cruise guest died after riding a mobility scooter off a pier and into the ocean at Celebration Key in the Bahamas.

At the same time, mobility scooters remain essential for many travelers and are typically used without incident. A full ban would be difficult to justify for guests who depend on them.

The main exceptions tend to be on some river cruises, where smaller ships and physical limitations such as low bridges and narrow locks can make access more difficult. Even then, some operators, including Viking River Cruises, still usually allow compact, lightweight folding scooters.

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