Man has life-changing penis injury on plane that will ‘never be the same again’

A British man has launched legal action against an airline, claiming he received inadequate care after a hot drink was spilt on his lap.

Nicholas Gibbs was travelling to London from Las Vegas with his partner last December when a mishap with a hot drink left him with life-changing injuries to his manhood.

The 41-year-old said that following meal service onboard the Virgin Atlantic flight, air stewards began serving hot drinks and handed him one before his tray had been cleared.

It is here that Gibbs alleges the hot drink slid off the tray and onto his lap, scalding him.

"They put it on the tray and, almost immediately, it slid off and went into my lap," he said.

"I was in absolute agony, but also in complete shock as the excruciating pain was just unbearable."

The airline has since apologised and says 'the safety and wellbeing of our customers' is a top priority (Getty Stock Images)

Gibbs then said it took a further 20 minutes before he received cold water to treat the burn, and he was later given burn cream, paracetamol, and pyjamas to wear for the remainder of the flight.

"I then spent around an hour sitting on a soaking-wet chair before they finally applied burn cream on my penis and put a bandage on it," he said.

By the time he arrived at London Heathrow, Gibbs says that his penis had become badly blistered, with the bandage dressing falling off.

After landing, Gibbs says that Virgin Atlantic promised there would be someone waiting in arrivals to give him further medical care, which allegedly 'never happened'.

"They organised someone to meet me at the airport but that never happened, which was a complete joke. And that was the last I heard from Virgin," he said.

"No follow-up calls, no correspondence – nothing. I don’t even think that they reported what happened."

Nicholas Gibbs says that is life has been changed massively by the incident, with he and partner Claire no longer able to try for a baby (Hudgell Solicitors)

The Hertfordshire resident is now launching legal action against the airline, saying that he is no longer able to care for his elderly mother due to the pain.

He also says he and partner Claire had been hoping to be pregnant by now, but this hasn't been able to happen due to the injuries he sustained.

"It's my manhood and it will never be the same again," he added.

Speaking about the decision to represent Gibbs, Thomas Roughley, of Hudgell Solicitors, said: "We feel he was not given satisfactory care from in-flight staff, while Virgin’s response in the aftermath has essentially been non-existent.

‘This is an extreme case, but the number of injuries that have occurred from hot drink spillages caused by cups sliding off plane tray tables is continuing to rise at a worrying rate."

The 41-year-old says he is no longer able to fulfil his duties as a carer to his mother (Hudgell Solicitors)

In response to Gibbs allegations, a spokesperson for Virgin Atlantic said: "We’d like to apologise for the experience Mr Gibbs had onboard.

"At Virgin Atlantic, the safety and wellbeing of our customers and our people is always our top priority."

The statement continued: "Our cabin crew are highly trained to deliver drinks safely, with hot drinks served below boiling temperature and filled to below the brim in specially designed cups or mugs.

"This procedure reduces the risks of spills by taking into account confined spaces for crew to operate, customer handling and times of turbulence."