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AIBU?

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Original poster

Burns from Costa coffee

198 replies

Ebad9518 · 31/08/2019 02:10

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?

OP posts:
FamilyOfAliens · 31/08/2019 10:56

I visibly recoiled in pain and not one person asked me properly if I was okay.

But you said yourself you were in such a rush that you didn’t even have time to make sure your cup was safe to carry.

Surely you didn’t stop still long enough for anyone to ask if you were ok, never mind reply?

imnotinthemood · 31/08/2019 10:57

Sounds like 2nd degree burns I'd get it looked at if its blistering. I also burned myself with boiling water ( also my own fault ) it was very painful and I had to get it looked at as started blistering .

Original poster
Ebad9518 · 31/08/2019 10:59

@Familyofaliens once I'd dropped the cup I obviously hung around to tell them I'd dropped it and apologised for doing so.

OP posts:
Original poster
Ebad9518 · 31/08/2019 11:00

Thanks @imnotinthemood I'll see how it goes on over the weekend and speak to a pharmacist on Monday if the feelings not come back.

OP posts:
PurpleDaisies · 31/08/2019 11:01

My hand is much better, although I do have blisters forming and I swear I've lost feeling in my fingertips.

You need to get this checked out now.

PurpleDaisies · 31/08/2019 11:03

This is from the NHS page on what to do with burns...

You should go to a hospital A&E department for:

all chemical and electrical burns
large or deep burns – any burn bigger than the injured person's hand
burns that cause white or charred skin – any size
burns on the face, hands, arms, feet, legs or genitals that cause blisters

Original poster
Ebad9518 · 31/08/2019 11:05

@Purpledaisies I didn't realise that. Even if it's not causing me pain though?

OP posts:
PurpleDaisies · 31/08/2019 11:06

Yes, no pain is a bad sign with burns. What does it look like?

PurpleDaisies · 31/08/2019 11:06

The loss of feeling is very worrying.

Original poster
Ebad9518 · 31/08/2019 11:07

@Purpledaisies oh gosh I didn't realise. I'm so surprised that it's okay today as it looked as though it had split my skin on all my fingertips yesterday and was just so painful. Why is it a bad sign?

OP posts:
Alsohuman · 31/08/2019 11:10

This reminds me of the woman who bought a MacDonalds coffee, drove off with it between her knees and then sued them because it spilt and scalded her. Does nobody take responsibility for their own stupidity any more? I’d have rolled my eyes too.

mum11970 · 31/08/2019 11:12

I’ve always wondered for whose benefit the ‘warning: hot liquid’ printed on the cup was for. Thank you, you’ve now answered that question.
Perhaps dropping off the room key at reception first may have been a good idea if it was so urgent. The toddler in the car with dh and a talkative dss have absolutely no bearing on your ability to wait a minute for the server to come back or you could possibly have called out to her, as I doubt she went very far. Her eye rolling would have put my back up but they didn’t actually do anything wrong.

cherryblossomgin · 31/08/2019 11:14

@AlsoHuman In that case it was found that the coffee was served over the safe temperature you are allowed to serve coffee and all she wanted was an acknowledgment from McDs and for them to pay her medical bills. They refused and she had no choice but to sue. She had third degree burns that required a long hospital stay and surgery. After the case McDs spun it to make themselves look good. They paid out and also changed how they served hot drinks.

Alsohuman · 31/08/2019 11:16

How did they spin her stupidity? What kind of idiot drives with a hot coffee between her legs? That was never disputed. The law was an ass.

gamerwidow · 31/08/2019 11:17

OP get yourself to minor injuries to get it checked it sounds like a serious burn.
Yes the accident was largely caused by your actions but who hasn’t done something silly unthinkingly when they were in a rush. The shop staff should have checked if you were hurt but equally should have been less stoic and told them how much it hurt.
Send an email to Costa explaining what happened and they can use it as a learning opportunity to check for shock and burns properly next time an accident happens.
Hope you feel better soon.

AppleHEAD · 31/08/2019 11:18

I know other people have said this but it amazes me people don't know how to deal with burns.
I dropped a scalding hot full bowl over my hand which was just out of the microwave. I ran it under cold water until it stopped hurting. It took about 15 minutes. Then there was no pain and no sign I had done anything.

RUN BURNS UNDER COLD RUNNING WATER UNTIL IT STOPS HURTING. ITS NOT ROCKET SCIENCE ITS BASIC FIRST AID.

Ilikethisone · 31/08/2019 11:23

Send an email to Costa explaining what happened and they can use it as a learning opportunity to check for shock and burns properly next time an accident happens.
Hope you feel better soon.

It wasnt a costa coffee cafe. The brand of coffee they serve is costa.

PurpleDaisies · 31/08/2019 11:23

Why is it a bad sign?

You may have damaged nerves.

PurpleDaisies · 31/08/2019 11:24

It took about 15 minutes. Then there was no pain and no sign I had done anything.

That’s great, but for lots of people that will just be the initial step in managing their burn. People don’t seem to know when to seek medical advice.

FormerlyFrikadela01 · 31/08/2019 11:26

This reminds me of the woman who bought a MacDonalds coffee, drove off with it between her knees and then sued them because it spilt and scalded her.

I was wondering how long until this got brought up. That mcds was found to be serving drinks far hotter than is safe. It caused 3rd degree burns that I believe required skin grafts... therefore far too hot to even drink. She only sued to cover medical Bills (huge as they are in the states).

littlewriggler · 31/08/2019 11:27

. I ran it under cold water until it stopped hurting. It took about 15 minutes. Then there was no pain and no sign I had done anything.

Depends on the burn. I had to run cool water over a burn for 3 hours for the pain to be bearable once, and then bandage it up on a pharmacists advice because it had blistered on contact with the scalding water. It scarred. Scalds can be pretty severe.

Cornettoninja · 31/08/2019 11:31

@Ebad9518, if your unsure a pharmacist will advise you where to go (a&e or walk-in) but they will able to assess you visually a lot better than randoms over the internet. Plus a pharmacist is a lot easier to access.

Numbness is bad because it indicates it’s burned deep enough to damage your nerves. This could be temporary and caused by swelling or something that requires further treatment. Either way it’s too late for immediate treatment so I would be happy with a pharmacist assessment at this point (this was yesterday want it?)

Re: McDonald’s, that case wasn’t won on the fact that the woman was undeniably daft but the temperature of the drink. To cause third degree burns shows that the drink had the potential to cause serious injury even drinking it properly or in the case of a spill that wasn’t the customers fault. From a PR point of view they were ‘lucky’ the woman managed to hurt herself in a particularly daft way but the liquid was too hot to be served in the way it was. Like a previous poster pointed out the outcome changed practices as well as the woman getting compensation (which in America is a different beast due to how medical care is paid for. I believe with insurance involved you may be obliged to seek legal avenues if you’re not at fault.

Croquembou · 31/08/2019 11:32

Oh god, it's stuff like this that made them have to put 'warning: contents may be hot' on coffee cups, isn't it?

I'm sure you're old enough to risk assess your own tea carrying and say 'sorry, can I have a sleeve to go round this?' or whatever.

I'm sure you'll survive the disapproval of a teenager working in Costa.

gilliansgardenbench · 31/08/2019 11:35

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Aprillygirl · 31/08/2019 11:36

Maybe these coffee shops need signs saying 'Only customers with a minimum IQ of 80 welcome.' That should put a stop to most accidents and/or compensation claims.