A student suffering a life-threatening illness has accused British Airways of putting her at risk after it charged her hundreds of pounds to take medical supplies on a long-haul flight.
Stephanie Chin, 21, suffers from gastroparesis, a chronic condition in which the stomach cannot empty itself in the normal way. It can cause serious complications such as malnutrition, dehydration and erratic blood sugar levels.
Ms Chin, of Pinner, claims that before confirming her booking for last month’s flight to Singapore, BA told her the supplies could be taken without a fee. But she said that when she arrived at Heathrow, check-in staff asked her to pay £700. She could not afford to do so and had to leave some behind.
“I can’t be without supplies for 10 days as it could be fatal. I am underweight,” added Ms Chin, who studies medicine at Queen Mary, University of London.
She said that ahead of the trip to visit family, BA agreed to let her take four cold boxes of nutrition and one box of fluids, which are taken intravenously.
“I phoned twice days before I travelled and was repeatedly told I did not have to pay.” However, “at my terminal they denied they’d waive the charges. I ended up leaving the fluids behind.
“BA put my life at risk. My apartment fridge malfunctioned and I ended up needing the fluids I’d left in London. I had to go to hospital in Singapore and pay £120 for five days’ worth.”
The airline has refunded Ms Chin but she said she would not travel with them again in case the situation reoccurred.
BA said: “We do not charge excess baggage for medical supplies but it must be pre-arranged. We are sorry for this misunderstanding. We refunded Ms Chin the full amount, as well as an offer of a £100 [flight] voucher.”
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