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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to be annoyed that national express trains won't heat baby milk?

134 replies

trixie123 · 01/11/2009 00:01

On a National Express train from york -London the other day and buffet car staff refused to heat the bottle of milk I had managed to keep fridge cool all day ready for the journey home. Produced a letter from managaement backing up their "health and safety" excuse. This might be slightly more believable if the changing table wasn't lacking a safety strap - not fun on a train hurtling along and rocking from side to side. Bloody H&S and bloody jobsworth staff who sympathised "I've got children too" but would rather my 3 month old screamed the place down or drank cold milk then give a me a pot of hot water (which I would have used there, not carried down the train). Can't help but assume it is profiteering so you buy a herbal tea or something to get the hot water.

OP posts:
BoysAreLikeDogs · 01/11/2009 00:04

not profiteering

you may sneer but no doubt someone has sued over a scalding in the past prompting blanket bans like this one

don't blame the rail service, blame our litigious society

scottishmummy · 01/11/2009 00:07

your responsibility to warm milk,not NE

take a flask hot water

clemette · 01/11/2009 00:10

You could just persuade your baby to take milk at mum temperature (or just below) then you will do without this faff altogether.

Biobytes · 01/11/2009 00:18

Baby milk?

If formula, carry a thermos with tepid water, and mix it when required.

If breastmilk, well, it's even easier...

I can't imagine any transport helping on that, I know that you can't expect that even in long haul flights.

displayuntilbestbefore · 01/11/2009 00:20

agree with scottish, clemette and Bio. You'll find most places won't heat milk nowadays - too many accidents waiting to happen and too much risk of a parent suing if milk then TOO hot. Your little one will be fine not having it warmed - get them used to it then if you don't have warming facilities again it's no bother.

jellybeans · 01/11/2009 00:20

I would take carton and flask if ff.

clemette · 01/11/2009 00:20

not "mum" temperature, "room" temperature...

clemette · 01/11/2009 00:22

PS I don't think it is jobsworth to care about people getting scolded and baby's milk being heated to too high a temperature and burning them.

Ivykaty44 · 01/11/2009 00:25

clemette - it is not that easy to get a baby to take there milk a diferent way - believe me I tryed.

My dd2 took the milk straight from the fridge and didn't like hot or warmed milk

To be honest I wouldn't like my coffee cold

Thing is now you know - but did NE advertise this fact before the trip or did they let you make the trip and find out on the way? You are their customer and it is their responsability to seek your approval not the other way round.....

cheeseandeyeballsarnie · 01/11/2009 00:31

i would have brought hot drink for me-coffee etc and stuck bottle in that or taken a flask of boiling water.
now you know.

Biobytes · 01/11/2009 00:33

Ahem, no, it is your responsibility to find out if they can cater for your particular needs, not the other way around. They take you from A to B, you check if the service is the right one for your particular needs and plan accordingly.

Squishabelle · 01/11/2009 00:48

Why does any poor employee (who is just following company policy and has no choice in the matter) always have to be referred to as a bloody 'jobsworth'? I hate this. There are certain things I have to do in my work (which I dont always agree with) and I hate being called a jobsworth because of it.

BrandonsMummy · 01/11/2009 01:46

Slightly beside the point but in my experience NE are a NIGHTMARE! I live on the south coast but all my family are in my home town York so I use the service regularly and have found all aspects of customer service APPALLING since NE took over. Never had any issues at all with GNER or any of the services I take from Brighton to London. I have had my ticket checked by the same lady on many occasions and she is so rude it's shocking! (sorry saw NE in the thread title and couldn't resist a rant

Morloth · 01/11/2009 10:03

Armpit and get baby used to tepid milk.

ObsidianBlackbirdMcNight · 01/11/2009 10:12

Nowhere gives hot water to heat bottles anymore. Better to ask for a cup of hot water to drink and use that.
It isn't profiteering, it's our ridiculous litigious culture.

unfitmother · 01/11/2009 10:21

I'd have been surprised if they had. Did you buy a hot drink?

ILoveGregoryHouse · 01/11/2009 10:21

No, you are absolutely not being unreasonable to be annoyed about this policy. However, as kat2907 says, this is how "society" is these days. I've been in your position and sympathise greatly but, now you know, you won't be without a way to heat milk again. One way to get round it is to just have the water in the sterilised bottle - you can keep it at room temperature for 24 hours and add the milk powder OR, have the ready made cartons of milk. Of course if it's EBM, that won't work!

Oh, and stand by for your flaming! If it gets too much I'll stick up for you!

TotallyAndUtterlyPaninied · 01/11/2009 10:24

YANBU.

I thought this was going to be a thread on 'they wouldn't heat a bottle because they promote bf-ing'. I would have had a field day moaning away on that thread.

pooexplosions · 01/11/2009 10:42

YABU. Its hardly the worker on the trains fault. You cal them a "jobsworth" without realising that they could actuallyget fired for doing that for you if there are rules against it, so maybe it is more than their jobs worth?

Nowhere heats bottles up, you should know that by now, and should plan accordingly. Did they advertise it before your trip? What do you want, a posted list of what they don't do, how bizarre! "We don't heat bottles, we don't serve lobster, we don't have cabaret..."

clemette · 01/11/2009 10:42

How is this really any different to "I took some cold soup for my toddler and the unreasonable gits wouldn't microwave it for me"?
I find it odd that people hanker after days where companies gave you everything you asked for (never happened) and when they didn't care about health and safety. Surely the problem with "society today" is that people don't always take responsibility for meeting their own needs and then look around for someone else to blame...

Squishabelle · 01/11/2009 10:45

Yes - sorry but its really annoyed me you calling him/her a "bloody jobsworth".

Lifeinagoldfishbowl · 01/11/2009 10:50

This is why I prefer babies to have room temp bottles as it stops all the faff when they're desperate for milk or if you can't heat it.

ILoveGregoryHouse · 01/11/2009 10:52

Surely the problem with "society today" is that people don't always take responsibility for meeting their own needs and then look around for someone else to blame...

You are quite right, clemette, but the issue here is that a company claiming "health and safety" reasons don't then follow through on all issues of health and safety - e.g. the baby changing table having no strap, being able to get a boiling hot cup of tea to spill over yourself....blah blah blah. I just think it's sad that, because some people have taken the piss, everyone is tarred with the same brush. We're all potentially criminal/litigious/irresponsible until proven otherwise. Sigh.

OrmIrian · 01/11/2009 10:53

No you don't want a train for that. You want a cup of hot water.

carocaro · 01/11/2009 10:53

YABU

Life is much easier all round if your baby could just have room temp milk now and again for trips etc. It won't do them any harm. It's hard enought traveling with a baby not to make it harder.

Or as others have said get a hot drink, not that this chucks out much heat to warm a bottle!