A Glynn County jury slammed the operator of a coastal Georgia casino ship with a more than $2.2 million verdict after a trial involving a man who fell through an open hatch.

After the accident, Robert Lowie and his wife were repeatedly assured by the Emerald Princess II's owner and insurer that he did not need to file a legal claim—assurances a judge ruled were made in order to run out the clock on a one-year statute of limitations printed on the back of a boarding pass.

Lowie, then a 66-year-old retiree, fell 10 feet through a hatch on the Emerald Princess II in late 2014, injuring his head and fracturing his spine.

According to Lowie's attorney Carl Varnedoe, Lowie and his wife relied on assurances from the CEO of the ship's owner and its insurance adjuster that they would cover his medical bills and pay for pain and suffering. Instead, after a year elapsed, the cruise line's insurer claimed the boarding pass barred any claims related to the accident.

“The insurer hired an independent claims adjuster who came down here, visited them in their home, made all these promises—in our opinion just baiting them, stringing them along until the hammer dropped,” said Varnedoe, who handled the case with colleague Billy Jones of Hinesville's Jones, Osteen & Jones.

Evidence revealed a “well-documented plan to allow the statute to run, then let them know the jig was up,” Varnedoe said.

A defense motion for summary judgment was denied when the judge ruled that Lowie and his wife proved “clearly, satisfactorily, and convincingly” that they relied on repeated representations “to their detriment” that they didn't need to hire a lawyer or file a lawsuit.

The defendant, Golden Isles Cruise Lines, was represented by Todd LaDouceur and Tony Jones of Galloway, Johnson, Tompkins, Burr & Smith in Atlanta. They did not respond to requests for comment.

The Daily Report was unable to reach the claims adjuster, Missouri attorney and maritime law specialist Stuart Platt, on Thursday.

The Emerald Princess II is a 200-foot, four-deck oceangoing ship that offers excursions in international waters, where customers can play poker, blackjack, craps, slot machines and other games.

Lowie, whom Varnedoe said sailed on the ship many times and was a “VIP member,” boarded on an afternoon in December 2014. He was walking on the first deck when he fell through a hatch a crew member left open and had placed chairs around.

Lowie “raked his head along the steel ladder” as he fell, suffering a brain bleed and two compression fractures to his spine that required three surgeries.

According to the plaintiffs' portion of pretrial order, claims adjuster Stuart Platt contacted Lowie dozens of times over the following year to discuss his injuries. Golden Isles' CEO Louis Dyer phoned Lowie and his wife at least 70 times and visited personally on several occasions during that time.

Platt, who Varnedoe said was hired by Allianz Insurance to handle the claim, “repeatedly assured” the couple that all of Lowie's medical bills would be paid, along with compensation for his pain and suffering, “and that there would be no need for plaintiffs to hire an attorney.”

Dyer made similar assurances, telling the couple that, “if they ever need anything from him, all [they] had to do was call.”

Over that year, Platt and Dyer gave the Lowie's more than $2,200 for prescriptions and out-of-pocket expenses.

According to the summary judgment order, in October 2015 Platt sent an email to Allianz and the cruise line saying the boarding pass language was “there in bold print. I think it's enforceable which means if Lowie does not file suit within one year, he is barred. I think we stay put until a year expires, then have a heart to heart with them.”

On the one-year anniversary of Lowie's accident, Platt called to wish them a Merry Christmas and see whether they had sent him any additional paperwork.

The next month he called Tina Lowie with some “bad news.”

According to her deposition, Platt said “well, I just found out, a few days ago, about the back of the boarding pass that there was a one-year statute of limitations.”

Platt said that, if Lowies would provide a letter for Medicare, the insurer may be willing to pay that agency and they “could probably get” $20,000 to $30,000 to settle the claim.

In February 2016, Platt sent his final invoice to Golden Isles and Allianz, which decided to deny the claim. His email noted, “I'm glad I was right about the validity of the statute on the ticket and it's [sic] enforceability, and now everyone is happy, except the Lowies.”

The Lowies sued in Glynn County Superior Court the next month. The lawsuit initially included a loss of consortium claim, but Varnedoe said maritime law bars such claims.

In August, Judge Anthony Harrison denied summary judgment on the defense claim that the boarding pass language barred the action. He issued a certificate of immediate review, but the Georgia Court of Appeals declined to hear Golden Isles' appeal.

Varnedoe said the last defense offer to settle the case before trial was for $425,000.

During a two-day trial, Varnedoe said the only expert testimony was by Lowies' Savannah neurosurgeon, James Lindley.

Lowie's medical bills totaled more than $236,000.

He said the defense relied heavily on evidence that Lowie had undergone an unrelated back surgery some years before and that his injuries were the result of a pre-existing condition.

The defense also argued comparative negligence, asserting that Lowie's injuries were largely of his own making. The defense portion of the pretrial order said the hatch was an “open and obvious” condition readily apparent to an observer.

The two-day trial wrapped up Tuesday afternoon, and the jury took about an hour and a half to award $2,236,850 in damages, with no liability apportioned to Lowie.

The award was “exactly what we asked for” in closing statements, Varnedoe said. He did not speak to any jurors afterward.