WWYD? Concussion after suitcase fell on my head!

[UndertheCedartree]

Just a thread to get opinions on this and decide what to do.

I was boarding my flight home from Florida on Thursday evening and was just sitting down when a suitcase landed on my head having fallen from the overhead locker. Honestly, the whole experience has been horrible and I feel I've been really badly treated. Being in the US all the Americans keep telling me to sue!

I don't necessarily want to do that but I would like to stop someone experiencing the same. Or I just forget about it and move on. Just interested to hear opinions.

So after it happened they called firefighters (who are paramedics too) to attend. When waiting for this I noticed they had moved my hand luggage off the plane and got my teenage children out of their seats who were both standing there crying. The firefighters came and the airline crew were telling me I have to go to hospital. I asked for some observations to be done and a stretcher brought. They insisted I had to get off the plane. The pilot came out, no empathy atall, just told me to get off the plane or he would call the police! I went with the firefighters and they told me they would have preferred to do observations before moving me but have to do what the airline says.

Anyway they took me to hospital and they said I was ok to fly home the next day. I tried to get in touch with someone to ask for some accommodations to make the flight more bearable as I was in so much pain. I was told I have to speak to 'the airport team' - we arrived at the airport at 11am and there was noone from the airline there. Eventually they came at 1pm but told me they just work on their behalf they can do nothing I need to speak to the airline on the phone/online. Tried numbers, messaging for hours. Eventually I was told they would make sure I was comfortable on the flight with pillows etc. We got on the flight having been up for a day and a half and so uncomfortable from.just sitting on airport seating, I thought I was finally going to be comfortable. When I got on board I asked for a pillow. You would have thought I'd asked for the crown jewels! I was shouted at, told there was only one pillow person customer (not actually a pillow just a small thin cushion) It was a horrible, painful flight and I felt so bad and was so dizzy when I got off the flight I am now in A&E.

They think it is a concussion but I failed one of the neurological observations so I'm waiting for a CT scan. I honestly think they could have taken more care and been much nicer. Wwyd?

I’m glad you’re feeling better

Nor Turkey, which is something travellers on cheap packages and medical trips often overlook.

@UndertheCedartree

Firstly and most importantly glad you are feeling better..

Sadly I'm going to be a picky sod again though and in the interets of expectation management point out that whilst you got help on your flight it was probably done as a favour, people can't expect BA cabin crew to lift bags into lockers as a matter of routine, even if asked.

BA.com is quite clear that passengers should.be able to lift their own hand baggage into the lockers, and I know in the past crew have been told they shouldn't do it.

No, they didn't. An ambulance took me to the airport hospital. Yes, our new flights were free. I still had to pay for the hotel/taxis/food.

I never had a plan to sue if you read my OP. I was just looking for opinions on what to do. My travel insurance have told me what to do which I'm following.

That's interesting you say they were advised not to help. From what I could see all the attendants were helping with luggage and rearranging luggage etc.

Oh really? My insurance specifically asked if they'd asked for my GHIC information.

Thank you! 😊

I never asked for help but on all the flights cabin crew offered to help. They also went around rearranging suitcases.

Thankfully you should be able to claim those costs back from your insurance policy :)

There is!

Hand luggage should not exceed 56 x 45 x 25cm, and the small item should not exceed 40 x 30 x 15cm. Both items can have a combined weight up to 23KG. From BA site

@UndertheCedartree there is no way that flight could have taken off after your accident. Any head injury has to be monitored and this could not happen in the air. Imagine if you had deteriorated. The right thing happened.

That would not give me much faith in my insurance company to be honest.

I think people have misunderstood a bit. I didn't have an issue with coming off the flight. It was more that I think the firefighters should have been allowed to do observations before I was moved. This was what they wanted to do but BA would not let them. In thr time it took with the pilot coming out and trying to threaten me obs could have been done. It was just a very stressful situation which could have been made nicer and with a bit more empathy from BA. In my befuddled state the pilot just made me dig my heels in more because he was so uncaring. Just made a bad situation worse. I think they should have just allowed the medical professionals to lead and do what they thought best.

Perhaps they weren't aware at that point that I was in America! I was still not quite with it when I phoned them!

And I think the medics could have dealt with it in a more efficient way and they would have got what they wanted I.e us off the plane! I wasn't too keen on them telling my autistic 18yo that he could stay on the plane with his sister either. Just wish there was a bit more common sense and empathy.

You needed to go to the hospital asap.

You were never ever going to be able to fly, the right thing happened. You need to stop obsessing about these "obs"

Agree, it is not relevant now. They prioritised your care, quite correctly. It was clear you could not travel on that flight and they transferred you to the first available once you were cleared to do so.

Op I agree with the pp, surely the first thing the insurance company would ask was where you were when the incident happened.
Id be querying that with them re them asking about the GHIC

For goodness sake, I have just clarified I am fully aware of that. But I still think the medical professionals should have been able to take the lead and it would have been a pleasanter and more efficient process for everyone.

So it seems, as you said earlier it was your dad who contacted the insurance company

More pleasant for who?
Your teenagers were crying, you were refusing to get off the plane to the extent the pilot had to threaten you with the police it sounds like you were causing a scene. If you had just got off it would have been a lot more pleasant for approx 300 people who had to witness it, your kids included. What was you lying on a stretcher which you demanded while they took your temperature and heart rate before they wheeled you off going to make the whole thing more pleasant?
You're in the wrong and need to drop it.

Drop what?

the airline ARE liable for the suitcase landing on her head

how she reacted after the injury - have you ever had a serious concussion or seen someone with one rationality doesn’t always happen with it neither is memory always accurate