An In-flight Accident Case Study - Client Situation
Our client was travelling to Mexico with her husband to celebrate 20 years of marriage when she was badly burned during her Thomson (TUI) flight.
She was drinking coffee from a disposable beaker with an unsecured plastic lid when the drink accidentally spilled. The coffee landed on her abdomen, both thighs, her right leg and her foot, causing immediate pain and inconvenience which cabin staff struggled to contain.
According to our client, a flight attendant threw ice and water into her lap as she sat in her seat. She was then helped from her seat to a toilet, where her lower clothing was removed and a small burn gel pack was applied.
Only 1 pack was at hand and it was moved around from one injured area to another. Our client was then helped back to her seat, wrapped in a blanket to keep her covered.
During the rest of the long haul flight to Mexico, she continued to experience burning sensations in the injured areas, and was twice given a bag of ice and more gel, but received no further attention.
After landing at the airport in Cancun, our client received no medical attention, and after consulting a local doctor the following day, she was prescribed antibiotics and she continued to dress her wounds. While these measures were of some help, she nevertheless remained extremely uncomfortable and in pain.
Our client subsequently had to buy approximately £150 worth of medication in Mexico, and since she was in pain for the duration of her stay, her special anniversary holiday had been effectively ruined.
How We Helped
After returning home to the UK, our client got in touch with our Holiday Claims Solicitors to make a claim for compensation from the airline.
Her case was taken on by Associate Legal Executive Paul Stevens who specialises in holiday accident claims. Paul arranged a plastic surgeon’s report, which confirmed that our client had sustained mainly second-degree burns of varying depth. Her scarring injuries continued to cause her embarrassment, impacting temporarily on her physical relationship with her husband.
Our client also faced further unexpected financial costs, as she was required to buy £150 worth of medication, and her injuries meant she was unable to use her local gym, despite paying a subscription fee of £156 that couldn’t be refunded.
We got in touch with the airline, citing a number of breaches of the Montreal Convention, which governs the international carriage of passengers, baggage and cargo.
The Outcome
The airline initially denied liability (fault), but we settled the claim for a total of £7,500 compensation. After the settlement was agreed, our client said she was more than happy to recommend Simpson Millar’s services to other people in a similar situation.
She described Paul Stevens as “very friendly”, adding that he “explained things very well at my level” and “always responded to my queries”.