In these pandemic, wintry, and let’s just face it, super busy times, Instacart grocery delivery has been a lifesaver for me multiple times. But earlier this week, it was a literal lifesaver for one elderly gentleman—thanks to his heroic shopper, Jessica Higgs.
In an emotional TikTok posted this week, Higgs explains how she broke her professional shopper’s rules when she felt something just wasn’t right while she made her delivery. “If you see something, say something,” she said through tears.
So even though she had to break protocol, Higgs took a chance and followed her intuition:
@jessicahiggs3 @Instacart #28DaysOfEucerin #fyp
I honestly teared up big time as I watched Higgs tell her story. She was making a delivery to an elderly man whose daughter had ordered for him through Instacart. It was just another day on the job for Higgs but she says “something was telling her” she needed to give this customer extra help, so she did. He couldn’t even get the groceries in the house by himself, so Higgs broke her usual “contactless delivery” rule and took them in for him. It was then that she noticed he didn’t seem well at all, and she became concerned. She noticed a propane tank in the house and with the way her customer was acting, began to suspect a gas leak was making him sick.
Higgs jumped into action and broke another rule: she messaged the man’s daughter rather than just marking the order complete. “I know this is unprofessional,” she apologized, but then she explained that the woman’s father was unwell and she was afraid gas was making him sick. The woman took Higgs’ concern seriously and said she would send her son to check on her dad. With that assurance, Higgs finally felt OK about leaving. She closed the order out and was unable to contact the customer further. She did note, however, that customer gave her a huge $100 dollar tip.
Higgs was elated when the next morning she found listening to her intuition and that “something” telling her to give this customer extra help had actually saved his life! The man’s daughter left a comment on Higgs’ Instacart feedback saying the propane tank was indeed leaking, and that Higgs’ factions had “definitely” saved her dad’s life.
CUE THE TEARS!
Higgs said she was “just an Instacart worker” but I’m here to call her a hero! Friends, never, ever underestimate your intuition. When you have a nagging feeling that something isn’t right, don’t tell it to shush! Our senses are here for a reason, and in this case, Jessica Higgs’ was there to give a family more time together. Bravo, Jessica, and thank you for sharing so we can all learn from your story!