More good news for cruise holiday enthusiasts as the industry announces another new safety policy to apply to all cruise holidays worldwide.

The new policy requires that lifeboats are fully loaded and launched at least once every 6 months for crew training purposes.

The policy applies to all ocean going cruise ships and companies who are members of the US-based Cruise Lines International Association as well as the European Cruise Council.

During the training the lifeboats are filled to capacity with crew members and then lowered into the water, it will be mandatory for all crew members involved in operating or loading life boats.

The policy has been introduced in the wake of the Costa Concordia disaster earlier this year and follows other safety improvements which were announced in April.

The new safety measures announced in April apply to cruise ships worldwide and include;

• A requirement to carry extra lifejackets
  Every cruise ship will now have to carry more than one life jacket per customer.
• Restricting access to the bridge
  Passengers will no longer be allowed onto the bridge whilst complicated manoeuvres are being carried out. Bridge tours will still be allowed to go ahead at other times
• More careful planning of a ship’s passage
  Every ship’s passage plan will now need to be drafted by a designated officer, approved by a master and briefed to every member of the bridge in advance.

Cruise Lines International Association chief executive Christine Duffy said: “The cruise industry continues to work on a global level to improve the safety of passengers and crew, which is our number one priority.

“Since January of this year, and in keeping with our efforts to continuously improve operational excellence, the global cruise industry has voluntarily adopted seven wide-ranging safety policies.

“We remain fully committed to exploring further enhancements in a number of areas that will add to the industry’s excellent safety record.

Cruise insurance

Wherever you are going on your cruise holiday, make sure that you have appropriate cruise insurance in place, making sure it provides cover for emergency medical expenses including evacuation from the cruise ship if required.