Passenger Sues Frontier Airlines for Burns Sustained From In-Flight Beverage
The plaintiff, a Philadelphia resident, was flying home when he requested a cup of hot tea, which was served in a "highly negligent fashion."
November 12, 2024 at 06:14 PM
3 minute read
Frontier Airlines was slapped with a personal injury lawsuit stemming from allegations that a passenger sustained third-degree burns after a cup of tea fell onto his lap.
This complaint was first surfaced by Law.com Radar, ALM's source for immediate alerting on just-filed cases in state and federal courts. Law.com Radar now offers state court coverage nationwide. Sign up today and be among the first to know about new suits in your region, practice area or client sector.
The Nov. 10 complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania by the Barrist Firm on behalf of Sean Miller, who claims to have sustained third-degree burns after a cup of tea he requested during cabin service burned his thighs and genitalia while traveling from Myrtle Beach to Philadelphia.
Miller, a Philadelphia resident, was flying home when he requested and was served hot tea. He claims the beverage was given to him in a "highly negligent fashion, filled to the brim, at an unsafely and unreasonably high temperature and without any form of a lid."
According to the complaint, the hot water spilled between Miller's legs, through his clothing, and onto his genitalia. As he was in a tightly situated airplane seat, he claims that after the spill he sat in agony while his body was burned. Miller was met on the ground in Philadelphia by an ambulance that took him to Jefferson Methodist Hospital, before he was transferred to the Jefferson University Hospital Burn Center.
As a result of the spill, Miller allegedly sustained burns and was left with disfiguring scars on his genitalia and thighs. The complaint brings claims for negligence and requests $150,000 in judgment, as well as costs and fees.
"Despite multiple letters sent to Frontier Airlines via FedEx overnight courier, I have received no communication, of any kind, back from Frontier Airlines, concerning, among other issues, the payment of my client’s past medical bills and payment for his ongoing treatment. It was, therefore, necessary to institute suit right away," said Miller's attorney, Adam S. Barrist of the Barrist Firm, in Media, Pennsylvania.
Counsel have not yet appeared for the defendant. Frontier Airlines did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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