2 weeks Ago By Gaurav Joshi
Commercial airlines are often scrutinized for various regulatory reasons, mostly related to flight operations safety. But customer service is also a large part of their business, and negligence can even land them in legal trouble under some circumstances. Southwest Airlines has been sued by a family that alleges that one of the flight attendants accidentally spilled hot coffee on their four-year-old son.
The family was traveling from Florida to their home in Salt Lake City, Utah, with a layover in Chicago. Southwest Sued For Hot Coffee Spill Budget carrier Southwest Airlines faces a lawsuit after a family alleged that the flight attendant on one of its flights injured their four-year-old son by spilling boiling-hot coffee on him. While the incident has only been reported now, it actually took place on September 19, 2024.
According to Reuters , Ryan Wong and Kamrie Wong were traveling from Orlando, Florida, to their home in Salt Lake City, Utah, when a cabin crew member carrying a drink tray on one arm extended hot coffee over their son and spilled it, causing burn injuries to his buttocks. The report had access to the court papers and notes that the boy shrieked in pain and said, “It’s so hot.” The report further adds that the family had a layover in Chicago, where they were met by paramedics, but things got tricky after a Southwest gate agent caused more pain to the child by making him sit on his buttocks.
The parents of the child also said that other flight attendants were unapologetic about the incidents and failed to get proper medical help. They added that their son has been traumatized by the incident, feels shame and embarrassment, including at school, has permanent scarring, and has issues sitting on his buttocks for too long. He is also reportedly afraid of flying due to the incident.
Reuters reports that the “lawsuit in Chicago federal court seeks unspecified damages for negligence.” Simple Flying contacted Southwest for comments, and the airline said that it doesn't comment on pending litigation. Similar Incident With Delta Air Lines This is not the first time that an airline has been accused of negligent behaviour by passengers.
In fact, Delta Air Lines was sued last year for causing severe burns to a passenger when a flight attendant spilled hot coffee on the victim. The passenger in question was also a flight attendant on a different airline and promptly notified Delta's flight attendants of her burn injuries and requested medical assistance. Mark Lindquist, the attorney representing the victim, said that she was watching a movie when a flight attendant set “the excessively hot coffee on a slanted food tray.
” This resulted in the coffee sliding and spilling on the victim. After multiple pleas, the victim received painkillers and a bandage. The passenger in question also asked the Delta flight attendant to find a doctor on the aircraft and make an announcement in this regard, but did not listen to her request.
It was also reported that paramedics who examined the victim on the ground said that those were the worst burns they had ever seen from a coffee spill. The victim was flying on an International Delta Air Lines flight from Paris, France, to Seattle, the United States. Airlines And Lawsuits The above two examples are only some of the several reasons for lawsuits against airlines.
Earlier this year, it was reported that Southwest was sued by the US Department of Transportation (DOT) for illegally operating multiple chronically delayed flights and disrupting passengers' travel. Around the same time, the department also announced $650,000 in civil penalties for Frontier Airlines for operating multiple chronically delayed flights. American Airlines was also recently sued by passengers of a March flight operated by a Boeing 737-800 that had to be diverted to Denver International Airport due to inflight engine vibrations.
Once on the ground, the plane caught fire, but thankfully, all passengers were evacuated safely. However, some occupants had to be taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation. Recently, former students who were enrolled at United Aviate Academy of United Airlines sued the airline for falsely representing the conditions of the training facility .
They claimed that they did not have enough flight time because of staffing shortages and the inadequate strength of the training fleet..
