Remember how back in 1994, a patron named Stella Liebeck sued McDonald's for serving hot coffee, and it became the punchline of just about every joke about ludicrous lawsuits? The illustrated example of how out-of-control litigious Americans have gotten? Well, all the silly buzz hasn't kept other fast food chain patrons from following in Liebeck's footsteps.
Most recently, a Louisiana woman named Kathleen Perez decided to sue Burger King for injuries she claims are related to a spilled cup of scalding coffee she purchased at a drive-through location. And as easy as it is to read Perez's story and roll our eyes, chalking it up to a "copycat" lawsuit, I actually feel pretty sympathetic to her case ...
Perez says an employee failed to properly secure the coffee cup's lid, which caused the coffee inside -- which she says was heated to an extreme temperature -- to spill. In turn, she allegedly suffered serious burns to her arm, chest and stomach, permanent scarring and discoloration. Wow ... Really, if that's all true, it's no wonder she's suing for "pain and suffering, disability, embarrassment and mental anguish."
Of course, it could have been her own darn fault. Maybe she's clumsy. I know I have a propensity to spill anything and everything I get my hands on. But at the same time, her point about how hot the coffee was is one that is up for debate. Although this can be a totally subjective thing, restaurants do need to be aware of how hot the beverages they're serving are, especially in light of what happened with Liebeck!
I don't know guys, this is a tough one. But in the end, my heart definitely goes out to this woman if she suffered the injuries she said she did ... and I don't blame her for feeling there's hell to pay.
What do you make of this case?
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Comments 21
The first one was actually a valid suit- the coffee was over 200 degrees and that woman sued for medial bills and was awarded more. It is possible the coffee was too hot and this other woman was injured, who knows.
Coffee is hot. I repeat: COFFEE IS HOT!! The brewing temperature of the average coffee maker is around 200 degrees fahrenheit. There shouldn't be a person on earth who doesn't understand that coffee is hot. Also, the fact that the lid was supposedly not properly secured is not justification for this lawsuit. If this woman had removed the lid to add sugar or cream and then spilled on herself she would still be suing. Sometimes the litigious nature of this country is appalling!
Like CraftyJenna said, the woman in the first suit had a valid complaint. The coffee was heated much higher than it was supposed to be, and spilled over her abdomen and crotch in her car as it was handed to her. She was burned so badly that she had to have skin grafts. While there are a LOT of ridiculous lawsuits out there, the first one (and perhaps this one!) are valid.
Something simular to this happened to me 4 yrs ago at Mcdonald's, the cashier turned too quickly with a pot of coffee because she was in a rush to refill a dine in customer's cup. That crap splashed all over my hand, I had a jaw breaker size blister on my hand, I settled with the manager right there for medical bill payment and a $100 gift card. No need for the news and a lawsuit in my case. :)