Leah Williams, from the English town of Alton, Hampshire, has suffered from a severe nut allergy all her life. When the 27-year-old boarded a Eurowings plane to London on July 13 in Düsseldorf on a business trip, she asked the flight staff to ban the snack for all passengers. But this wish was allegedly denied to her.
As a result, she was forced to buy all the packets of peanuts that were on board. “The stewards looked at me blankly, like I was crazy, and said, ‘But there are so many, we have to count them all’,” she describes her experience to the British “Mirror”. “I said: ‘Please count them and I will pay for them all because you leave me no other choice’. She then spent 168 euros for a total of 48 packages – three times her ticket price for the approximately 80-minute flight On the outward flight from London to Dusseldorf, her request not to be served nuts was complied with, and the staff had made a corresponding announcement and informed her of her allergy.
Now the Brit wants her money back because she believes she shouldn’t have been saddled with these costs. “Eurowings should be ashamed of how they handled this situation and how I felt,” she says.
When asked about the incident by British newspaper The Independent, a spokesman for Eurowings expressed his regret, but explained that the woman was offered the alternative solution of informing all passengers sitting around her about her allergy. “She agreed at first, but then decided to buy all the packs,” the rep said. In addition, there is no guarantee that the aircraft will be free of food that can trigger an allergic reaction, as passengers are allowed to bring their own food on board. Also, due to air conditioning and ventilation, despite regular and thorough cleaning of the aircraft, it is not possible to prevent an accumulation of traces of nuts – including residues from a previous flight.
Eurowings advises passengers with allergies to carry any medication they may need, such as allergy medication and EpiPens, in their hand luggage and to inform the cabin crew in advance.
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Sources: “Mirror”, “The Independent”, “Insider”
