Burns from Costa coffee

[Ebad9518]

Well, a cup of tea.

Been on holiday all week, it's been lovely. Although accomodation was pretty sure. We had to change our bed sheets due to a period stain in my side and a rip on DPs side, as one example.

Going to leave today and got coffee and tea from the restaurant who serves Costa coffee. Just given a cup for the tea which was very full. Stupidly didn't ask for another cup or a holder despite thinking this was going to be tricky. Picked it up from the lid to walk away, not quite on the lid but holding on the top iykwim. The whole thing crumpled in my hand and burnt me. I tried not to drop it but had to because of the pain. Thankfully it didn't get DSS. Went to the till and informed the girl that I was very sorry but I'd dropped it and she literally sighed and rolled her eyes. Another woman stepped in and was like 'as long as you're alright' which I absolutely wasn't. She made me another tea despite me protesting as I just needed I've on it. Managed to keep my shit together until I got to the car. Thankfully had I've packs in the cool bag and have had to sit for 3 hours in the car with a bloody ice pack on it. I've birthed a child bit fuck me the pain. Thankfully it's calmed now but i feel so pissed off at this girls reaction. I've worked in customer service for years and hers was awful.

So aibu to be so pissed off?

It sounds like you didn’t tell the first girl you’d burned yourself, just that you’d dropped your drink. So she rolled her eyes because she’d have to go and clean it up, I expect. Not that you should do that in front of a customer but I don’t think she’s as bad as you made out.
If you didn’t tell the staff you burned yourself they couldn’t really help.

in future for any burns you need to use cold running water for 10 minutes and then wrap in cling film.

Absolutely not! Do the cold water but NEVER wrap in cling film. The burn causes damage because it is still hot and burning through layer of skin. That is why you run it under the water for a long time. If you put cling film on it and there is any heat left in it at all, it will be trapped and cause further damage. Think dog left in a hot car in the way that the heat will not escape.

somebody in Costa will want to check that this branch's hot water for tea isn't too hot iyswim

It's doeant soundile an actual costa coffee cafe. It's a resturant that serves costa coffee products.

As I said, it's the same as a resturant that serves yorkshire tea. Yorkshire tea wont get involved. She needs to complain to the restaurant

Yanbu at all to expect not to have a tetchy attitude and eye rolling from the first server. How horrible for you .

Proof the world is dumbing down .
You knew it was hot (who would have thought?!) and didn't get a protective holder or pick it up properly then get pissed off at the poor cow at the counter. I'm not surprised she rolled her eyes, shes probably had enough of eejit.

Water for English tea should be boiling hot. It's not made in advance like coffee. You should expect it to be served at near boiling temperature.

*eejits

You made a couple of mistakes, and the staff didn't know you'd been scalded. Hopefully your hand will recover quickly.

What a rude woman to roll her eyes and not offer you first aid. It doesn't matter whose 'fault' it was, you're a paying customer who was injured by their product in store and all she did was roll her eyes?! I'd complain about her reaction. Letting you run cold water over your hand would have been the least she should have done.

always ask for the little cardboard trays they are a much safer way to carry - also the problem with these lids is that the teabag string hangs out & does let the seal shut easily you have to be extra careful with them. Op you held it from/near lid - I am sorry you were hurt, but again the way you seem to have phrased it to the assistant you don't seem to have said you were hurt that clearly. As pp state first aid wise running cold water under tap is best. For everybody else please note ops experience it could happen to anybody -

Your fault, you picked it up using the lid, what did you expect to happen 🤷🏻‍♂️

We always laugh when we see those signs on takeaway cups for tea and coffee which say 'caution hot!' and wonder why they are needed, but now we know!

Sorry you spilled your tea on yourself and it burned you. That's not nice. Wherever you are if this happens, you can expect some help but only if you say clearly what has happened. People are not mind readers. And the fact it happened really doesn't sound like it was anybody's fault.

I think you've gone home and feel a bit sorry for yourself (understandably) but are now somehow looking for someone to blame or feel cross with about it. Actually, sometimes these things just happen and no-one else is to blame and we just made a bit of a poor call/action with a nasty consequence. Miss one of those things in life which happens and there doesn't always have to be someone to blame. It strikes me as hyper-sensitive to feel really cross (or worse still consider making a complaint) about the shop assistant. Goodness, if we all complained or took to heart every little time someone looked at us or used a tone we didn't quite like, no-one would get anything done! Recognise that the way you were treated wasn't a big deal and that they didn't offer help because you didn't say you'd hurt yourself.

It's unfortunate you burned yourself and you can feel a bit sad about that...but honestly move on from dwelling on it and looking for someone to feel annoyed with.

I agree complaining to Costa about a restaurant which simply serves hot drinks under their branding won’t achieve anything. It’s like complaining to coke a cola about a mixer received in a pub.

You need to complain to the restaurant itself. In terms of apportioning blame I think you do have to take some responsibility for noting the drink looked ‘tricky’ and not seeking assistance or further equipment (double the cup up, one of those cardboard sleeve things, napkins etc.). Also you didn’t pick it up in a safe way either, I do the same thing naturally (Darwin award on my horizon I’m sure) but I know it would be my fault if I spilt something.

However, the restaurant could make sure they provide the above sleeves, napkins etc. and their staff could use training to treat every hot drink spill as needing first aid automatically.

I’m presuming as you didn’t seek medical attention your burn isn’t too bad - blistering etc., although someone should have a look at it if the area is larger than a 50p iirc. I don’t think you need to go all out seeking solicitor advice but there are definite improvements that could be made off the back of your complaint.

somebody in Costa will want to check that this branch's hot water for tea isn't too hot iyswim

FFS. Are you really suggesting that no-one should be able to buy a cup of tea made with actual boiling water, when it is utterly pointless made any other way, because some people are too stupid to take care when handling it?

Sorry OP, but your first mistake was picking up the cup by the lid, which is bound to end in tears even if the lid was on properly it's not designed to hold the weight of a full cup of liquid, just to stop splashes.

But it sounds like the shop could have handled it better too.

I suppose it could be a way to phase out disposable cups - no-one can have a hot drink unless they are served it in a Contigo style cup that is insulated and spill proof.

On the treatment issue following is from Nhs website

First aid for burns

Stop the burning process as soon as possible. This may mean removing the person from the area, dousing flames with water, or smothering flames with a blanket. Do not put yourself at risk of getting burnt as well.
Remove any clothing or jewellery near the burnt area of skin, including babies' nappies. But do not try to remove anything that's stuck to the burnt skin, as this could cause more damage.
Cool the burn with cool or lukewarm running water for 20 minutes as soon as possible after the injury. Never use ice, iced water, or any creams or greasy substances like butter.
Keep yourself or the person warm. Use a blanket or layers of clothing, but avoid putting them on the injured area. Keeping warm will prevent hypothermia, where a person's body temperature drops below 35C (95F). This is a risk if you're cooling a large burnt area, particularly in young children and elderly people.
Cover the burn with cling film. Put the cling film in a layer over the burn, rather than wrapping it around a limb. A clean clear plastic bag can be used for burns on your hand.
Treat the pain from a burn with paracetamol or ibuprofen. Always check the manufacturer's instructions when using over-the-counter medication. Children under 16 years of age should not be given aspirin.
Sit upright as much as possible if the face or eyes are burnt. Avoid lying down for as long as possible, as this will help reduce swelling.

YABU to have picked up a takeout coffee cup full of tea by near the lid. I’m sure you’ve had takeout coffee cups before? They’re not made of steel, they’re cardboard. Surely any functional adult realises that if you grip it near the lid the top of the cup caves in/the lid comes off.

The eye rolling was rude but tbh if an adult managed to get tea all over the floor for me to clean up and managed to spill tea all over themselves because they couldn’t be bothered to handle a cup of tea safely I’d certainly be eye rolling internally and perhaps you just caught her at the end of her tether that day and it was obvious.

Yanbu at all to expect not to have a tetchy attitude and eye rolling from the first server. How horrible for you

I’m also hoping the OP soon recovers from the unimaginable trauma of having someone roll their eyes at her.

What a rude woman to roll her eyes and not offer you first aid.

"I've dropped my tea"
"Would you like first aid"

Is a conversation that would never happen.

Is the state of your bed of any relevance to the fact that you dropped a cup of tea which you knew was too full and picked up badly? I'm trying to work out the link between the two.

By the way, I totally understand the impulse when you’ve fucked up and really hurt yourself or embarrassed yourself to try blame someone else, it’s pretty much human nature, an instinctive way of trying to save face. But part of being a grown up and a decent person is waiting for that initial annoyance to pass and then honestly reflecting on the incident and recognising whether it actually was someone else’s fault or whether you just tried to place blame there because you felt silly/shock and surprise from the pain. Hopefully when you wake up this morning and read the thread and get outsider perspectives you’ll be able to do that. Hope the hand feels better, you won’t be lifting a disposable cup of boiling liquid by near the lid again which is something good to come out of this!

I don't think the member of staff should have shown her irritation or rolled her eyes whether she knew op had burned herself or not! Accidents happen! But then there are always grumpy twats around who lack the ability to empathise on the most basic level - including a fair few examples on this thread.

Who would have thought a newly poured hot drink would be hot enough to burn !

Great thread. Shows exactly what the modern world is like and how people don't take responsibility for their own actions and are always looking to blame and complain, however daft the issue......and that there are always those who will jump on theboutrage bandwagon and encourage them to feel aggrieved and to complain.

Excellent post Gamma.