- A 6-year-old girl was left scarred by a hot meal on a United Airlines flight, a lawsuit says.
- It alleges that the tray table was “defective” and caused the meal to fall onto the girl’s lap.
- And it accuses United of failing to properly train flight attendants to treat burn injuries.
Two parents are suing United Airlines, alleging their 6-year-old daughter was burned by a hot meal due to a faulty tray table.
Michal and Ben Fefferman filed the lawsuit, which Business Insider has seen, in a Chicago court last Wednesday. It says the incident took place on a flight from Tel Aviv, Israel to Newark, New Jersey in 2022.
A flight attendant gave the “unreasonably hot” meal to the girl’s mother, who then placed it on her tray table, the complaint says.
However, it adds, “this particular tray table was defective, slanting downward toward the seat.”
The suit says the meal then slid off onto the 6-year-old’s lap. She suffered “severe” burn injuries which have left her “scarred and disfigured,” it adds.
When the girl's mother requested medical attention from the cabin crew, the suit says they couldn't help her properly as the plane didn't have suitable supplies to treat burns.
The six-year-old "suffered in extreme discomfort for the remainder of the 12-hour flight," the lawsuit says.
It alleges that United didn't properly train its flight attendants on how to safely provide hot meals to minor passengers, or how to respond to burn injuries.
The Feffermans requested a jury trial for medical costs and unspecified damages over $75,000.
Their case claims negligence as well as liability under the Montreal Convention, an international treaty which stipulates airlines are liable for any passenger injuries onboard an aircraft, unless they can prove the passenger was negligent.
When reached by BI, United Airlines said it could not comment on pending litigation.