I get what your saying here with regards to no advice but the captain is not really making all the decisions. He’s operating the boat to meet requirements of the company. It’s the company that controls what the boat is doing in general.
If the captain had decided to skip serving meals to the passengers for example no doubt he’d of heard from the company. He could however skip the roving watch and the company evidently would say nothing.
I should add that I understand that the captain is responsible for the safety of the passengers. I imagine the owner saying that would sound like a very hollow excuse.