Passenger sues airline after flight attendant spilled coffee and left 'severe' damage to his tattoo
A passenger has sued American Airlines after claiming that a flight attendant spilled a cup of 'scalding coffee' onto his arm which burned him so badly it damaged a tattoo.
According to TMZ, George Latorre was flying from Vietnam to New York this month when he asked for a cup of coffee.
In a complaint filed in Manhattan's State Court he claims the flight attendant who brought him his drink accidentally spilled it onto his left arm.
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He claims this caused second-degree burns which resulted in 'blistering, peeling, bleeding, possible permanent cosmetic deformity and scarring'.
Latorre's complaint says that the flight attendant had been 'careless, reckless, and negligent in serving scalding coffee to the plaintiff in an unsafe manner', while he says the incident caused him 'extreme pain and suffering' along with 'emotional harm, mental anguish and distress'.
The man claimed that after the incident he also asked to move to a more comfortable seat and offered to pay to switch to business class, but that crew members on board the plane wouldn't let him.
After disembarking the flight Latorre claimed he went to see a doctor to ask about the burn and was told it was 'serious enough' that he should go and see a surgeon about it.
Latorre alleges that the pain from the burn stops him from sleeping well and has meant he's had to seek out more medical treatment.
In his complaint he also claims that American Airlines did not 'hire and retain competent personnel and employees'.
American Airlines told TMZ that it wouldn't comment on pending litigation.
Companies have faced lawsuits in the past over people claiming they have been burned by the heat of their coffee.
A woman in her 80s recently sued McDonald's alleging that she suffered serious burns after she spilled some of their coffee onto her legs.
Some flight attendants have told passengers that coffee is pretty much the last thing they ought to be ordering on a flight, but not because you could get burned.
Flight attendants on social media have warned passengers that the hot water on a plane can have come from a machine that is 'rarely cleaned'.
Then again, other airlines have taken to offering some passengers free tea and coffee on certain flights so would you really be able to say no to a cuppa if you didn't have to pay for it?
LADbible has contacted American Airlines for any further comment.
Joe Harker