A woman was told she was not allowed to fly with TUI when she went to check in for her flight home from Jamaica.
Victoria Devorie, who lives in Crosby, was travelling from Gatwick Airport to Montego Bay, Jamaica on Thursday, June 8. The 44-year-old, who has autism, said a few hours into the journey she needed to use the toilet.
Due to another passenger being in one of the toilets for a long time, Victoria said she decided to use the one nearest to the galley of the plane. Before taking off, an announcement had been made by the crew to say the galley was a working kitchen and not to cross it.
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As Victoria was waiting for the toilet, she claims she crossed the galley slightly to let another person past. She claims it was then one of the air steward's spoke to her in a "disrespectful manner".
Speaking to the ECHO, she said: “I went up the other side of the plane and was waiting to use the toilet and I moved out of the way for another passenger, and I can remember it verbatim, I stepped a foot into the galley and this crew member reprimanded me like a child.
"When you have autism, certain situations can trigger you. You can go into fight, flight or freeze. Initially I froze and I apologised to him and I said ‘I am really sorry, I know the rules, I am just getting out the way of a passenger. You don’t need to talk to me in the way you are talking to me. You’re being really combative.’
The 44-year-old said she was very upset and, because she had been left confused by what happened, she exited the wrong way and claims she was then "yelled at" by the flight attendant.
Victoria said: “I did move forward and I said ‘can I take your name?’ and initially he would not give me his name and I moved forward and he said ‘you’re still in the galley’ and I said ‘I want your name’. And I said ‘this is not OK for you to talk to me like that’.
“I was trying to make him understand I wasn’t doing it on purpose and I said I was sorry. I said ‘I work in service’ and he said ‘oh right so what, if somebody stepped into your kitchen you wouldn’t be annoyed?’
“I said to him ‘if it was an accident I’d ask them to leave and I would understand it’. I told him he was talking to me in a really misogynistic way and it was not acceptable.
“The air steward who had been serving us put his arm on my arm and said ‘go and sit down’. So I exited the other way and he screamed at me and said ‘you’re still doing it' [going into the galley] because I just got really discombobulated.
“So yes, I exited the other way rather than going back across and all the way round. And then I just got really upset.” She added: "The situation left me feeling incredibly upset and triggered, especially considering that TUI was aware of my autism before the flight."
Victoria claims throughout her communication with the airline, and when she booked her holiday, she made them aware she was autistic.
A spokesperson for TUI told the ECHO Ms Devorie did not discuss the fact she had autism with the TUI customer service team at any point during the booking process or prior to departure.
The spokesperson added: "We have a team on hand to work with customers who may require additional support during their holiday."
After arriving at a hotel, Victoria claims there were a number of issues which she logged with TUI and was compensated £250.
But things got worse for Victoria when she tried to check-in 48 hours before her flight home and couldn't. She rang TUI who she claims told her everything was fine.
However, when she arrived at the airport for her flight home on Thursday, June 22 she was given a letter, which the ECHO has seen, telling her she was being refused from her TUI flight and was unable to get on another home with the airline.
She said: “They then issued me with a letter telling them I was a flight risk, banned from the flight and they cited on the second page I was drunk, arguing with crew and passing through the galley. I looked at them like ‘what am I supposed to do?’
Victoria had to pay for a £2,500 Virgin flight to Heathrow. Her partner had to board the original TUI flight as there were no others for him to get on.
Victoria added: “I literally sat in the airport, continuously on the phone to my mum. My phone died and I didn’t have the right USB cable, so I couldn’t charge my phone.
“So I began to have a meltdown. I sat where my partner had left me, I sat there for nine hours. I didn’t even go to the toilet, I didn’t even have a drink of water.
“It was just playing around and around in my head and was like ‘I wasn’t drunk’.”
Victoria said the incident with the TUI crew member made her feel "unwanted, vulnerable, and afraid, causing serious panic attacks".
She added: "When someone books and raises awareness of their disability, the booking agent must flag it or require the person to wear a lanyard with sunflowers, the globally recognised symbol for someone with a disability."
A TUI spokesperson said it was sorry to hear about the events leading up to Victoria being refused boarding and added: "The safety and security of all our customers and crew remains our highest priority.
"We have a zero tolerance policy to disruptive behaviour on our flights and it's unacceptable to willingly ignore crew safety commands.
"At TUI, we strive to meet all our customers holiday needs and want to make travelling with us a smooth experience from start to finish.
"We have a team on hand to work with customers who may require additional support during their holiday. Unfortunately the passenger did not discuss this with the TUI customer service team at any point during the booking process or prior to departure."
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