Havant man in wheelchair claims Burger King 'discriminated' against him after being refused drive-thru service

John Leighton from Havant fancied grabbing a bite to eat while out and about, so headed over to the Burger King in Park Road South. Confined to his electric wheelchair, Mr Leighton went through the drive-thru, and placed his order with no problems whatsoever.

But when he got to the window to collect his food, he was told that staff could not serve him on health and safety grounds.

Mr Leighton remains unconvinced by these claims, and is demanding further explanation from the fast food company.

He said: ‘It felt like Burger King was refusing to serve me purely because I was in a wheelchair. I’ve held back on speaking out about it because I thought it wasn’t worth the hassle, but it just keeps bugging me – I can’t get it out of my head.

‘I sent a letter of complaint to the company but I haven’t heard anything back.

‘When I placed my order everything was absolutely fine, but when I went to collect my meal they refused to serve me. They claimed it was down to health and safety concerns, but I’m simply not buying.’

Mr Leighton said that Burger King staff did offer for him to come inside, but he politely declined.

‘We have enough bugs and illnesses flying around at the moment,’ he said.

‘Plus I much prefer being outside anyway – they’ve already cooked the food so it’s just a case of passing it through a window. You see people coming through on their mopeds or electric scooters and I’m sure there are never any issues with those.

‘It’s annoyed me because other people could end up being treated the same way.’

A spokeswoman for Burger King said: ‘We are fully committed to providing an inclusive and safe environment for our guests. In line with this commitment, we only allow DVSA-approved vehicles to be served at our drive-thru lanes and are unable to serve pedestrians – including those on mobility scooters or wheelchairs – as it is a health and safety risk.

‘We apologise for the inconvenience this may cause however welcome all guests to be served in our restaurants.’