A passenger who is suing a cruise company over its handling of COVID-19 says it was 'probably very stupid' of her to believe the vessel was free of the virus

• Susan Karpik is suing a cruise company and operator over their handling of COVID-19 on board a ship.
• She said it was "probably very stupid" of her to believe the ship was free of the virus when she boarded.

A woman who is suing a cruise company over its handling of COVID-19 on board a vessel has told the court that believing the ship was free of the virus was "probably very stupid."

The Guardian reported that the woman, Susan Karpik, told the court she had been naive to believe the operator, Princess Cruises, would be able to keep COVID-19 off the ship.

Karpik, a former nurse, is the lead plaintiff in a class action against the charter company, Carnival Australia, as well as Princess Cruises, per the outlet.

Giving evidence in the Australian federal court on Monday, Karpik said: "We had assumed there was no coronavirus on that ship when we boarded … and I recognize now it was probably very stupid now of us to have that view."

Karpik also told the court before she left for the cruise in March 2020, that her son-in-law, who is a doctor, offered his perspective on cruise ships. He said that they "were Petri dishes and the risk of infection was high for any illness," per the Guardian.

Carnival and Princess Cruise Lines did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment made outside normal working hours.

However, Carnival has indicated that it would defend the claims in court, according to the Guardian.

Karpik alleges that the company failed to take reasonable care of the passengers on board the Ruby Princess, per the lawsuit. This includes her husband, Henry Karpik, who suffered serious illness after contracting the virus, per the Guardian.

The Princess Ruby recorded hundreds of positive COVID-19 cases in March 2020. The Guardian reported that 663 out of the 1,679 Australians on board tested positive for the virus, and 28 people later died from the outbreak.

A US couple on board the ship previously accused Princess Cruises and local health officials of covering up infections on board the cruise ship, Insider reported.