Carnival Cruise Lines has been in the news for all the wrong reasons recently. Yet it’s stayed in business thanks to the generous help of the US government writes Gwynn Guilford:

• The US Coast Guard has spent millions of dollars on rescue operations for stranded passengers on Carnival Cruise Lines.
• Yet as a company incorporated in Panama (despite having its headquarters in Miami) Carnival doesn’t have to pay any US corporate income tax – meaning it gets the services of the US Coast Guard for free.
• By being incorporated outside the US it’s also able to avoid all the regulation and safety requirements that would probably help prevent such disasters.
• Despite the accidents travelers appear to have a short memory. Bookings recovered three weeks after the most recent incident, likely helped along by generous promotions.

Read more about the Senator trying to take action against Carnival Cruise Lines, a response from a company spokesperson, and a breakdown of what Carnival has cost the US coast guard over here.

Source: Quartz