Woman with diabetes wins £2,000 case for having drink confiscated during Red Hot Chili Peppers gig

Kayla Hanna, 20, was attending a show in Belfast in 2016 when the incident took place.

A woman with Type 1 diabetes has been awarded £2,000 after her fizzy drink was confiscated by security staff at a Red Hot Chili Peppers concert.

Kayla Hanna, 20, was attending a Red Hot Chili Peppers concert in Belfast in 2016 when the incident took place.

The student always carries Lucozade to control her blood sugar levels, but the drink was taken by Eventsec Ltd staff despite her attempts to show them a diabetes tattoo and insulin pack.

She’s now been awarded £2,000 after a judge in Belfast ruled the incident to be discrimination.

Miss Hanna was 18 at the time of the incident. The drink was confiscated after staff told her she wasn’t able to bring it into the concert.

“I told her [ the security guard] of my condition and showed her the tattoos on my wrist which indicate I have diabetes,” she told the BBC of her ordeal.

“She said that ‘anyone could have that’ so I also showed her my insulin pack and the meter used to check my levels.”

“She consulted with another guard and they insisted that they had a strict policy and they would not allow me to bring the drink inside.”

The case was taken to court under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, with Ms Hanna backed by  The Equality Commission for Northern Ireland.

“I really hope that now this issue has been brought to light it won’t happen again to me or other people who live with diabetes,” she added.

Responding to the verdict, Mary Kitson from The Equality Commission for Northern Ireland said: “These are the kind of circumstances in which the reasonable adjustment provisions in the Disability Discrimination Act can be most beneficial.”

A spokesperson for Eventsec Ltd said they were “disappointed” by the verdict.

“”The facts surrounding this case were an isolated incident,” the company said.