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Home » Korean Air » Passenger Sues Korean Air For Coffee Spill That Left Her “Lame”
Korean AirLaw In Travel

Passenger Sues Korean Air For Coffee Spill That Left Her “Lame”

Matthew Klint Posted onFebruary 12, 2024 9 Comments

a coffee mug on a plane

A woman is suing Korean Air in New York State court for “grievous” coffee burns to her groin that her lawsuit claims left her permanently disabled.

Korean Air Faces Another Hot Coffee Lawsuit…Passenger Says She Is Now Lame And Permanently Disabled

The lawsuit claims that on October 8, 2023, a flight attendant spilled coffee on Yanling Yu during a flight from New York (JFK) to Seoul (ICN).

“The flight attendant…negligently spilled a coffee cup of boiling hot coffee on plaintiff’s lap, causing her to sustain grievous personal injuries near her genital area, with attendant special damage.”

The lawsuit further claims that the accident made U lame and disabled and as a result she has racked up high medical bills:

“Yu has become sick, sore, lame and disabled, has sustained severe and serious injuries, has suffered and will continue to suffer severe mental and nervous shock with accompanying pain, has required medical treatment and was and will be unable to attend to her usual duties for a long period of time; was obliged to and did expend large sums of money for medical care and attention and will be required to expend additional sums of money for medical care in the future to attend to her injuries which she believes to be of a permanent nature.”

Her attorney wants to reduce this case to a simple Montreal Convention strict liability case…in essence, because it occurred onboard by a Korean Air employee, they are responsible.

But unlike past lawsuits (and Korean Air has been sued for this very issue in the past), there is no narrative offered as to what actually happened. How did the flight attendant negligently spill coffee on her? Was it served during turbulence? Was it carelessly left on a tray? Served full to the brim without a lid?

While I understand the legal theory at play (a defendant is accountable regardless of intention), I would certainly like to know how this happened. Because if she dropped it on her lap after the flight attendant handed it to her, I am not comfortable blaming the flight attendant.

That said, I do think airline should serve coffee with lids…one big lawsuit could more than make up for the annual cost of these onboard.

You can read the compliant here.

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About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

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9 Comments

  1. Window Seat Advocate Reply
    February 12, 2024 at 7:57 am

    Complaint states seat 33B, presumably NOT a window seat thus another excellent example of why, contrary to popular opinion, a window seat is far and away a better seat.

  2. Alert Reply
    February 12, 2024 at 9:09 am

    Yep , great bodily injury for sure . Hot Coffee is one of my two fears on aircraft , so I keep a magazine and newspapers on my lap when there is coffee about . Turbulence can cause a FA to spill the hot coffee . ( My other fear is being brained by a carry-on bag in an overhead bin .)

  3. Santastico Reply
    February 12, 2024 at 9:25 am

    I already said before and will say it again. Airplanes should be treated as a mode of transportation and not as hotels, bars or restaurants. You want your decaf with creram and two sugars? Go to Starbucks. You want your martini? Go to a bar? Sit down, fasten your seatbelts and enjoy the ride to your destination. Water is all that is needed. Bring your food and stink the place as many already do. Stop using airplanes as an entertainment place.

  4. Alert Reply
    February 12, 2024 at 9:51 am

    @Santastico … Currently , an unpleasant mode of transportation to be endured , with precautions .

    Formerly , a pleasant mode of transportation to be enjoyed .

    • Santastico Reply
      February 12, 2024 at 10:01 am

      Agree, but it is your choice to get into that mode of transportation. Seriously, I am tired of passengers getting drunk or suing airlines for BS. This coffee thing is very easy to solve. We do not serve hot beverages. That will end any chances of a lawsuit in the future. Maybe I am the wrong passenger but all I need is my headphones and water on a plane. Leave me alone and I don’t bother anyone.

  5. Neville Singer Reply
    February 12, 2024 at 10:48 am

    Served with scalding hot water on Vueling flight. It ended up in my lap scalding my arm and my lower abdomen, luckily not my groin , I had blistering on my abdomen and large discouloing Om my arm. YjHis happened I December 2023, I am still scarred on y body but my arm is still slightly discoloured. I worry if I can go out into the sunshine with it

  6. Jerry Reply
    February 12, 2024 at 1:16 pm

    Look at that Photoshop work with the coffee mug over the airplane. Was this story done by Matthew Klint or Pablo Picasso?!

  7. 747always Reply
    February 12, 2024 at 9:56 pm

    Did you put the top on, or did they put the top on?

  8. Tony N. Reply
    February 13, 2024 at 6:46 pm

    No food or anything hot on an airplane. Just water. Problem solved. And here’s your $10 voucher to a restaurant when you get off the flight.

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