Anna Harris, 28, was devastated after claiming something solid in a McDonald’s apple pie left a gaping hole in her tooth
A bride-to-be with a dentist phobia has slammed McDonald’s after breaking her tooth on allegedly something solid lurking in an apple pie.
Anna Harris, whose fear of the dentist is so severe that she blacks out in the chair, now has to fork out £500 in dental bills to fix the shattered tooth.
But jewellery and bakery business owner Ms Harris, 28, claims she cracked her tooth in half after chomping down on the 99p dessert she bought from the restaurant’s Binley branch in Coventry.
Anna is so terrified of having it fixed that she waited nearly three weeks and had to take anti-anxiety medication to muster the courage and book a dentist appointment.
‘I know as an adult it’s completely ridiculous to have a dentist phobia like this, but it’s something I’ve had for a long time which started when I was a little girl,’ said Miss Harris, from Bishop’s Itchington, near Leamington Spa.
‘To a normal person it would just be a case of going to the dentist and getting it fixed but I also suffer with anxiety and panic attacks.
‘I’m better than I was – some stuff still triggers it, mainly anything medical or dental.
‘I held it together in McDonald’s and was just angry because all I’d done was gone to have some food then my tooth had gone.
‘When I came home to my fiancé I just lost it and started crying.’
Anna claims that despite the store manager initially being sympathetic and vowing to get to the root of what happened, she hasn’t heard back from McDonald’s.
Anna has had to fork out £500 to get her tooth fixed privately. Her phobia of dentists is so severe that she will anaesthetised for the procedure
Ms Harris, pictured with her fiancé Scot. She claims that despite the store manager initially being sympathetic and vowing to get to the root of what happened, she hasn’t heard back from McDonald’s
She added: ‘I have had to have diazepam to get to the dentist or I get quite distressed.
‘The first thing my dentist said was that I might need root canal work, which was scary.
‘She then did a deeper X-ray and said she could fix it with a very large filling but within a few years it would need a crown on it.
‘These aren’t the kinds of thing you want to hear when you have a dental phobia.’
Anna claims she has been quoted just under £500 to get her tooth fixed by a private dentist – £350 for sedation and £145 for a filling.
Anna said: ‘I’m annoyed I’ve got a big dental bill through no fault of my own.
‘My fiancé Scot surprised me with a holiday to Florida next month – it’s been a dream of mine to go to America at Halloween – but now I have to pay out for a dentist.
‘I’m also getting married next year and I want to look the best I can in the photos.
Ms Harris’ fiancé Scot surprised her with a holiday to Florida next month, but she has now had to fork our £500 to get her tooth fixed privately
A spokesman for McDonalds apologised after hearing about Miss Harris’ experience and said the restaurant is launching an investigation
‘Weddings and holidays aren’t cheap, Scot and I work hard so we can enjoy these experiences together.’
McDonald’s said that food safety is of the utmost importance to them and they have launched an investigation into the incident.
A McDonald’s spokesman said: ‘We are sorry to hear about this customer’s experience. Food safety is of the utmost importance to us and we place great emphasis on quality control, following rigorous standards to avoid any imperfections.
‘As soon as this matter was brought to our attention, we apologised and started an investigation. The restaurant team also contacted the customer after she had left the restaurant to check on her wellbeing.
‘Our Customer Services team will be in touch as soon as the investigation is complete.’