Image courtesy of www.cebudailynews.inquirer.net
Source: www.cebudailynews.inquirer.net
Airline ‘regrets’ how cup of hot water spilled on 10-year-old daughter
“Apologize or we’ll sue.”
Elders of the prominent Gaisano family in Cebu threatened to sue Philippine Airlines (PAL) for negligence after a paper cup of hot water accidentally spilled on the leg of their 10-year-old daughter.
The girl was traveling with her family from Bangkok to Manila on board a PAL flight last February 22.
A demand letter was sent since the girl suffered second-degree burns on the left thigh and leg. She had asked for some warm water to drink.
“What was given by one of the PAL flight attendants was boiling water,” said family lawyer Baldomero Estenzo. Shocked by the heat, the little girl dropped the cup.
Instead of apologizing, the airline crew insisted that what was given to the child was only “warm water”. The handling of the customer complaint irked the parents Glenn and Valerie Gaisano Sebastian, who called it “tactless and arrogant” in their demand letter.
The little girl is the granddaughter of Eddie Gaisano of the Cebu-based Gaisano Capital Group which runs a family-owned chain of malls in the Visayas and Mindanao.
PAL REGRETS
PAL president Jaime Bautista wrote to the family on March 5 expressing “regret” over the mishap and assured he would seriously take up the matter with the airline management.
The next day, Shirley Ho Vicario, former envoy of the Philippines to Papua New Guinea, sent a text message to the lawyer on behalf of the PAL president.
She relayed Bautista’s desire to personally meet the Gaisanos and said the airline president was coming to Cebu on March 10 between 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. for this purpose before flying back to Manila on 11 a.m.
Eddie Gaisano “was fuming mad” at the message. The grandfather said that if the airline officials were sincere in asking for an apology they would not “order the Gaisano family to meeting them at their own sweet time and convenience,” according to the family lawyer.
Estenzo said they sent another letter to the PAL president yesterday requesting him to comply with their demand for a public apology otherwise the family would go to court and sue for damages.
Cebu Daily News tried to get in touch with PAL’s liaison officer Cielo Villaluna but Bautista and other top officials were still abroad. They left last Sunday for New York City for PAL’s inaugural flight reviving that route.
According to the demand letter, the little girl was not given proper medical attention by the plane’s crew members.
Upon arrival at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, no wheelchair was provided, and none of the plane’s crew guided them where to bring the child, said the family.
Estenzo said the Gaisanos are asking PAL management as well as the lady flight attendant who gave the hot water to the girl to apologize in public for their “negligence, tactlessness, and arrogance.”
The Feb. 23 demand letter said the damage done to the little girl “has caused serious physical, emotional, and psychological trauma to the grandparents, the parents, and the child.”
“My clients are now questioning why such incident happen to a nation’s flag carrier. Are your crew properly trained? Is your airline fit to serve long haul flights considering the apparent lack of competence or training of your crew member in handling emergency medical situations? What do you intend to do with the damages that my client’s young daughter has suffered,” stated the letter.
“We’re not after material considerations for the damages incurred by PAL,” said Estenzo in a phone interview.
“All we’re asking is for them to issue a sincere public apology and to settle things with us. “We’re trying to protect other people from going through the same experience.”
He declined to identify the female flight attendant for the time being pending attempts to settle the case with PAL.
He said PAL should issue a statement of apology in national and local newspapers.
“They have to acknowledge their mistake, say sorry, and apologize for what happened,” he said.
A medical certificate issued by Dr. Richard Enecilla of St. Luke’s Medical Center in Taguig City said the little girl sustained a “second degree thermal burn.”
The Gaisano Capital Group has over 20 branches in Cebu, Tacloban, Ozamiz, Iloilo and Pagadian.
bat di pa ibigay ang public apology. di naman sila nagpapabayad since they have money as well.
ReplyDeletePAL wouldnt until their investigation concludes. Saying sorry is admitting your fault, negligence which opens another can of worms.
DeleteIf PAL apologizes, a stewardess head will roll. Thats a fact. And suing will be kinda long and useless din, walang class action law suits here and how about the jurisdiction?
Magso-sorry pero yung naagrabyado ang mag-a-adjust sa schedule ng may kasalanan?!!! #ediwow
ReplyDeleteIba tlga pag may pera.. maaaksyunan agad.. you can demand tlga..
ReplyDeletewala pa nga aksyon!
DeleteI wonder what if this happen to a middle class family, would they even take proper action and issue a public apology?
ReplyDeleteI took PAL before from Vancouver to manila and my 4 months old baby was crying for an hour. Sabi ng kababayan natin na matanda "ang tigas ng ulo mo bata ka" sabay turo sa mukha ng anak ko. I said she's just a baby and maybe just like most of us she's tired too but this old lady didn't stop saying that my child is hard headed. I told the flight attendant about the incident and she said may karapatan naman daw yung passenger kasi she's also paying. I told her yes may karapatan sya mag reklamo pero duruin ang anak ko na 4 months eh wala. Filed a complaint pero wala rin naman nangyari.
Poor costumer service and shame dun sa kababayan natin at pinatulan pa ang baby.
DeleteSino kinomplain mo yung attendant? Baket? Dahil di inaway yung matanda for you? Wow!
DeleteAno ba ineexpect mo mangyari? Kung ako naman pasahero din maiirita rin ako sa anak mo.
DeleteForeigners are more forgiving of crying babies compared to some of our kababayan. My baby cried throughout our plane ride but that was delta air and whenever you say sorry to foreigners, they'd say its ok he's a baby or we understand.
DeleteTo anon 1255 and 113, do you know that the air pressure inside the plane makes your ears pop?sa Tagalog ma sakit sa ears ng mga babies or even adults ang air pressure ng plane. Teka nakasakay na ba kayo ng eroplano? Hindi pa yata kaya ignorante kayo.
DeleteLOL 141. Naintindihan mo ba yung argument namin? Hindi 'no, kasi kulang sa reading comprehension. We go back to the question... ano ba ineexpect ng pasahero na mangyari? Awayin ng attendant yung matanda?
DeleteKung maganda kasi yung customer service, the attendant could have offered to check if the old lady could be transferred to a differer seat. At least fi sila magkatabi
Delete@3:34, eh papano naman kung fully-booked ang flight? And yes, i am from PAL...
Delete4.48 its your job and you have to appease or help appease. Problem solving ninyo yan.Ngayon ikaw tatanungin ano gagawin mo? Nganga na lang?
DeleteI totally agree! Part ng training dapat nila and for a fact na trabaho talaga nila ang customer service.
DeletePag maldita ka may paglalagyan ka talaga. Ito ay para sa dalawang panig.
ReplyDeleteoh my! JJB should issue an apology asap for the company's sake.
ReplyDeleteYan. Tapos na ang usapan the last time it was written here. The complainant are suing and determined which means it really happened that the boiling water caused second degree burns.
ReplyDeleteSue them to teach a lesson. The aggrieved party are rich and cannot be bought. Buti nga maturuan ng leksyon kasi maraming mga FA na mayayabang like the one posted na ayaw tulungan na maiakyat ang bagahe sa taas.
#firstclassatsayatsoy
Kuya, kahit saang airline, nasa rule ng FA ang hindi tulungan buhatin ang bagahe ng pasahero sa overhead bin. Pwede nilang ituro pero pasahero ang dapat gagawa. Basa ng rules minsan.
DeleteHard but true. Laborer utusan kang kumuha ng tubig. Kaya wag maging maarte at matapobre kasi mas mabaab pa kayo mga FA sa laborer
Deletewhy soo bitter?
Deleteyou work 9am-5pm to save money for a vacation once a year para lang makapag travel and kami we travel all the time with free hotel, food.
may I remind you na hind namin work ang magbuhat sa bags nyo. try mo gawin yun sa ibang airline at baka masigawan ka pa.
Go work your ass off while we waiters fly for FREE and see the world every month :)
bag mo, buhat mo. Wag mo bigatan kung di mo kaya iakyat. If you cant lift it, might as well check it in.
Deletefirst class yayas?
Deleteingat sa pag accuse ng ganyan. may colleagues kami na anak ng generals, politicians, and business men. try nyo demean kami. we might be your yayas in the sky pero pagbaba ng aircraft baka mas mataas pa kami sayo
Benefit of the doubt. Baka naman vertically challenged lang at di talaga kaya ilagay sa taas. Kaya nga may height requirement for FAs di ba.
DeleteYou pack it up, you pick it up. And no, were not here to serve you first and foremost, we are here to get you safely across from point A to point B. Btw, its passengers like you who made us pros. Dealing with dangerous and ridiculously bad passenger behavior.
DeleteWala sa rule ang hindi tulungan??if u asked the fa kahit hndi mo tlga kaya hindi tutulungan?kung hndi abot hindi tutulungan?hindi tutulungan dahil wala sa rule?im sorry pero kasi may times na hindi talaga kaya iakyat.. hindi naman dahil sa bigat kaya hindi maiakyat ang handcarry.. minsan kasi sa position o pwesto mo.. u will try na hindi makaabala sa ibang passengers kaya nagmamadali kang iakyat and if there's an fa around they will automatically help not because they're asked to help but they being courteous..10 yrs of working abroad you do the math kung ilang beses na ko nakasakay sa eroplano..there are times na hindi ko talaga malagay sa bin kasi nga ayoko makaabala sa dadaanan ng tao so I will jst try to reach it from my seat and im so glad to say that wala pang instance na nagstruggle ako sa paglagay ng bag sa bin na hindi ako tinulungan ng FA at pinoy FAs yun lahat..kasi nga "tulong" they are in the service line hindi maiiwasan ang hindi sila tumulong kesahodang wala sa rule yun..
Delete-missB
kaya nga, pag di kayang buhatin ng pasahero i check in. to MISS B.
DeleteAnon 2.00 pm magbasa ka ulit..not because mabigat kaya hindi kayang mailagay its because u have to be considerate enough para hindi ka makaabala sa ibang pasahero..sinabi ko bang mabigat?kung mabigat malamang incheck in ko bakit papahirapan ko sarili ko magbuhat ng mabigat?laptop bag and my personal bag lang ang hinahand carry ko ang I always abide the rules of the airport and aircraft dahil ayoko ng abala at ayoko makaabala ng ibang tao..and im just saying na im lucky coz the FAs always help me if I want to put something in the bin..never ko sila in ask but they always offer help..gets mo??
Delete-missB
Okay, example: Laptop ang laman ng bag. Maliit ang tao, hindi abot ang taas.
DeletePinagbawal niyo na din maglagay sa ilalalim ng seat. Di parin tutulungan?
Ang point kasi ni missb anon 2.pm pwede naman tumulong ang fa kung gugustuhin nila kahit na mabigat o hindi yung dala ng pasahero para mapabilis ang buhay
DeleteYung mga hindi makaintindi, tama ang profession nyo.
DeleteYeah prominent family. Kung ordinaryong tao lang ang nabuhusan for sure di papansinin yun..
ReplyDeleteayan, dun sa mga nambash dati nung pinadala ang letter and photo dito sa FP, na nagduda tungkol sa paso dun sa paa nung bata. may mga komento pang pangmatanda daw yung paa o braso o kaya imposibleng may kumukulong tubig sa eroplano. ayan lumabas na sino ngpadala nung sulat, cge magbash pa kayo. palibhasa yan lng alam nyo gawin inbes na bigyan ng bnefit of the doibt yung letter sender.
ReplyDeleteLagi na lang may nababanlian sa eroplano, itigil na kasi pag serve ng yakisoba at instant bulalo
ReplyDeleteSo true! Ang baho kaya nung mga instant noodles na yun. Idagdag pa ang tuna sandwiches.
DeleteGaisano family naman pala. Naalala ko nung kine-question ang credibility ng kasong eto dito sa FP, baka namemera lang daw ang pamilya ng bata.
ReplyDeleteStory: they asked for warm water. The water was given to the yaya. It was the yaya who accidentally spiilled the water at the kid. Apology was given. Everything was okei. Then someone, a relative, posted it in social media and telling everyone it was the arms that got the 2nd degree burn. Now its the legs. And it was the yaya not the attendant. The yaya should have checked if it was too hot to give to the child. If ever it was really "boiling" water.
ReplyDeleteyung totoo, ikaw yung flight attendant ano?!
Deletestill boiling and warm water is different!! dpat tinanong ng FA if para saan ba gagamitin yung water para alam nya if anu ang ibibigay niya.. tsk
DeletePAL has the worst customer service ever. People are probably just taking their flights because of price and/or because they have direct flight to the Phils. from the US. Other than that, I can't think of any good reason to take PAL.
ReplyDeleteThey have good pilots.
DeleteExagg. I have had better experience in PAL than a whole lot of other airlines. NIcer attendants, better food, comfy seats. Now that PAL is back flying MLA to NY, I see no reason to taking those other airlines again, It's not perfect. It's even more expensive than many other airlines. The business class in those Middle east airlines are far superior, but it's OA to say that there is no good reason to take PAL.
DeleteAnon 1:07 AM, but not for me,, sa PAL lang ako nagtitiwala at alam kong safe ako.
DeleteI will still choose PAL over cebupac. i saw the earlier post regarding this issue and arm ang pinicturan and then now the report shows na leg nman.
DeletePublic apology talaga? I hope they also post public apologies to customers they don't serve well in their malls, everyone who has had an accident in their malls- madulas, napaso, nabastos ng saleperson nila.
ReplyDeleteOh and I hope they pay minimum wage and regularize their employees too.
Hahaha tama
DeletePagbigyan mo na teh. Nabubulok na nga mga buildings nila eh. Ipaparegularize mo pa mga empleyado. LOL
DeleteNaka base ako sa Cebu, and I agree with you.. Pangit din ng customer service nila.
Family ni Steven Gaisano ang may ari ng Gaisano in Mindanao, not this Eddie. Magkaiba yan. Pareho ng ninuno but different families.Malayo na.
ReplyDeleteThere is no cause of action here. If I were the PAL president, I would apologize in private NOT public. Ano to, national issue? Yung bata ang nakatapon. It is obviously not boiling water kasi wala naman boiling facility. Plus, yung paglala nung sugat, malamang dahil kinamot or hinawakan. And humingi ng tubig dahil gusto uminom ng MIlo? Nakakaloka. Bakit hindi tinikman ni Yaya.
ReplyDeleteThis is PAL at its BEST. I was never impressed by their services anyway. Arrogant flight attendants who think their positions are that of models. They are just a bunch of glorified waitresses. I remember I saw an older woman needing help to put her luggage up in the luggage bin. This FA merely looked at her and did not even acknowledged her. My husband was the one who helped this older woman. FAs so busy checking their make up on the mirror. That's why I never fly PAL. I'd rather fly another carrier and pay more than deal with these bunch of wanna be's!
ReplyDeleteItong mga FA masyadong mataas tingin sa sarili. Helloooo! Class A waiters/waitresses lng kayo noh, tiga abot lng nmin kayo ng tubig/drinks kalokaa kayooo!!! Hahahahahahaha
ReplyDeleteCorrect! Naalala ko nlng tuloy ung masungit na FA sa Cebu pac! Grrrrr!!!
DeleteParang urban legend lang ng isang sikat ng Coffee chain yan, yung umorder si customer ng kapeng mainit. tapos kinasuhan nya yung kumpanya kasi mainit napaso sya.
ReplyDeleteWhen your flying long haul and with a baby, I suggest you let him drink a drop of cough syrup to him sleep coz it is really annoying when babies cries onboard and you wanted to sleep.
ReplyDelete