Ontario teen speaking out after sustaining burns from hot coffee spilled onto him by flight attendant

A Mississauga teen is speaking out after he said that he sustained second-degree burns from a hot coffee that was accidentally spilled onto his lap by a flight attendant. (Courtesy of Jack Hayden)

A Mississauga teen is speaking out after he said that he sustained second-degree burns from a hot coffee that was accidentally spilled onto his lap by a flight attendant, who then continued to serve other passengers rather than providing assistance.

Jack Hayden was making his way to Budapest from Toronto Pearson International Airport in July to help a friend clear out their late-grandfather’s home when the incident happened.

The 19-year-old was initially concerned about getting to the airport, telling CTV News Toronto he was unsure of how everything worked given that it was his first trip abroad. While everything went smoothly at Toronto Pearson, he said his flight to Frankfurt was delayed – and he only had an hour layover.

For the most part, Hayden’s flight to Frankfurt was going smoothly. It wasn’t until they were preparing for landing that things went awry.

According to Hayden, flight staff were making their way through the airplane offering coffee prior to touchdown. When one flight attendant placed a cup onto his tray, Hayden said she put it on an angle – “and it spills directly onto the right side of my lower body.”

“The first thing I felt was the pain and the burning,” Hayden said. “The reaction from the (flight attendant), I didn’t really get much. She just said, ‘Oh no.’ She didn’t move her cart or anything, she was just getting more coffee for other people.”

After two minutes, Hayden said, the flight attendant moved the cart, which allowed him to visit the washroom to wash off and cool down.

“It’s not working, (I’m) still in a lot of pain, and then I get back to my seat to notice (the flight attendant) put another coffee there,” Hayden said. “Didn’t even try to help me or anything like that.”

Hayden couldn’t put his seatbelt on when he boarded his flight to Budapest due to the pain, and for the first few days of his trip, he said that he had troubles sleeping.

“Luckily for me, my friend’s mom (who spoke Hungarian) helped me out a bit with getting (the) pharmaceutical products,” Hayden said.

He said he had to reapply what he was prescribed every two hours, fearing it would get infected.

“It was just annoying. It definitely made my trip hell, to say the least,” Hayden said.

According to Hayden’s mother, Jackie, her son was told he was suffering from second-degree burns by a pharmacist abroad.

He did not visit a hospital or doctor’s office, as the burns were mostly cleared up by the time he returned to Toronto.

“I was really worried about him,” Jackie said. “He was sending me pictures of it every day so I could make sure it wasn’t getting worse or whatever. I just was like, ‘Oh my God, poor kid.’”

“Given that he was travelling alone, I just felt like, how could they not offer him first aid like this? And the thing was, the minute it happened, it’s not like he was able to stand up in his seat, he’s a tall kid, and remove the clothing that’s burning him. She was still there with the cart, he couldn’t get out.”

Photos of the burns Hayden says he sustained onboard his flight. (Courtesy of Jack Hayden)

When asked for comment, a spokesperson for Lufthansa would not confirm hot coffee was spilled on Hayden’s lap onboard its flight that day. The airline did say, however, that an undisclosed amount of money was offered but declined by Hayden.

“Also, please note that due to Lufthansa Group’s stringent data privacy guidelines, based on German law, I am unable to provide detailed information on this claim, nor are our customer service representatives able to discuss passenger claims with anyone other than the affected passenger,” the statement reads.

Lufthansa’s direct correspondence with the Haydens, reviewed by CTV News Toronto, also did not confirm the incident happened on board their flight.

“We would like to inform you that there was no injury report filed on board the flight by your son and we are still awaiting a reply from the crew if they can recall the incident,” an email, sent on Sept. 15 by Lufthansa Customer Relations, reads. The airline also offered to compensate Hayden $500, the maximum amount it said they could offer without any medical documents and bills provided.

Air Passenger Rights President Gabor Lukacs pointed to Article 17 of the Montreal Convention, which outlines air carriers are liable for damage sustained in case of death or bodily injury on board the aircraft or through the course of its operations from embarking or disembarking.

“If you get injured or killed on an airplane as a result of an accident, then (the airline is) liable, and I would say hot water being spilled on you is considered to be … an accident. So, in that sense, the passenger is on the same ground. The question is, what are the damages of the passenger?” Lukacs told CTV News Toronto.

Hayden says he just wants to see the airline take some accountability for what happened that day.

“I mean, an apology would be great one,” Jack said. “The gesture, the accountability, like none of that’s there, they’re acting like, ‘Oh, it’s my fault,’ when clearly they’re the ones that did it. It’s just quite ridiculous to me.”