An Instacart worker followed her instinct and bent the company's rules to save a customer's life. Jessica Higgs posted the incident on Tiktok, which has garnered more than 10.8 million views in one day, Parents reported.
Higgs was almost in tears while sharing the story. "I just want to start this off by saying, if you see something, say something." She then narrated that she was on a routine Instacart run. A daughter had placed an order for her father, who could not shop for himself.
According to Higgs, it was not unusual for her to go out of her way for her customers. With this particular customer, she felt that she needed to do it. After completing the groceries, she delivered the order to the man's home. The man's daughter told her to put the bags on the porch, which Higgs said was the standard protocol.
Trusting your instinct
However, when Higgs arrived at this particular home, she had a gut feeling that something was off. She said that something was telling her to get the guy out. When the man stepped outside, she said she offered to bring the groceries in. Breaking protocol, she went inside and placed the groceries where the man asked her to.
As per Instacart policy, Higgs was not supposed to go inside someone's house, but she said she bent the rules and used her judgment this time.
"I could not just leave," she said. She thought that the man looked sick.
She said that she usually never talks to the customers in delivering supplies. She would just put the groceries down and then leave. But this time, she had this nagging feeling that she had to say something.
Higgs then messaged the daughter who placed the order to tell her that she could not complete the order yet because she had to message her first. She also told her that her father was not doing well, and there might be a leak from the propane tank, making the father sick.
The daughter's response
The daughter responded to let her know that she asked her son to check on her father and the leak. She also increased her tip from $14 to $100, the Independent reported.
However, Higgs said that the greatest reward came when the daughter commented on her Tiktok post that said, "Thank you so much. Once my son went to check on my dad, it turned out it definitely was leaking. You definitely saved my dad and younger son's life."
The video has then garnered 125K comments from Tiktokers commending her for trusting her instinct and going out of her way to save the father.
Using their voices to help others
Higgs was blown away by the overwhelmingly positive response to the video but hoped that others would also learn from the experience.
As a mom of two, she hopes that her sons would be proud that she stuck to her words that "if you see something, say something."
Higgs added that she taught his oldest son to stand up against bullies should he see someone being bullied.
