An American couple stuck on the Grand Princess Cruise ship has filed a lawsuit for more than $1 million in damages against the ship’s operator, Princess Cruise Lines Ltd, a unit of Carnival Corp.

Ronald and Eva Weissberger of Broward County, Florida have claimed that the company put profits over safety and did not have proper screening protocols in place.

The lawsuit, filed in US District Court in Los Angeles, details how the couple alleges they did not receive screening or examination before they boarded the vessel.

The cruise ship was linked to 12 coronavirus cases from an earlier voyage to Mexico.

The couple has alleged that the company caused them emotional distress and trauma as they fear they will contract the virus after being forced to remain on-board the ship where people have been confirmed to be infected.

In a statement provided to CNN, Princess Cruises responded saying: “Princess has been sensitive to the difficulties the Covid-19 outbreak has caused to our guests and crew.

“Our response throughout this process has focused on the well-being our guests and crew within the parameters mandated on us by the government agencies involved and the evolving medical understanding of this new illness.

“We (sic) not been served with any lawsuit relating to this matter, and we will not comment on any pending litigation.”

Princess is refunding passengers the full price of the cruise plus air travel, hotel, ground transportation, and pre-paid shore excursions.

The couple’s complaint read: “Defendant Princess chose to place profits over the safety of its passengers, crew and the general public in continuing to operate business as usual, despite their knowledge of the actual risk of injury to plaintiffs, who are elderly with underlying medical conditions.”

The complaint did not identify the Weissbergers’ medical conditions or provide their ages.

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The ship, which holds 3,500 passengers, was forced to stay out at sea after at least 21 people on board tested positive for Covid-19.

The vessel has remained about 10 miles off the coast of San Francisco for days.

Princess Cruises confirmed that the disembarkation of guests onboard Grand Princess is expected to begin today in the Port of Oakland.

The lawsuit said that the cruise operator should have developed methods for protecting passengers after the deaths of passengers on another of its cruise liners, the Diamond Princess.

Six people on board the Diamond Princess died including one British holidaymaker, while 700 others became infected with the virus.