I burned myself on McDonald's coffee this morning. Should I sue?

[Scarpozzi]

I got a bag of this stuff and thought I'd give it a try. It turns out that it was WAY too hot and I suffered a pretty bad burn this morning. Should I demand millions? This isn't a joke. I'm McSerious People!

 

[Humpy]

You're not supposed to dip your balls in it. It's a beverage.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

That case was the biggest myth ever here is a quote from the evidence

A vascular surgeon determined that Liebeck suffered full thickness burns (or third-degree burns) over 6 percent of her body, including her inner thighs, perineum, buttocks, and genital and groin areas. She was hospitalized for eight days, during which time she underwent skin grafting. Liebeck, who also underwent debridement treatments, sought to settle her claim for $20,000, but McDonalds refused.

No place should ever serve you something to drink that is so hot you need surgery if you drink it.

**Plus if I remember correctly the town they were located in warned and/or fined them multiple times about the coffee burning people. They chose to be sloppy.

 

[Sonikku]

The McD was also super heating the coffee WAY above company spec. McD used a lot of misconceptions American gobble up about that case to their advantage in legislation.

 

[balloonshark]

You're not supposed to dip your balls in it. It's a beverage.

He was teabagging his McCoffee?

 

[midwestfisherman]

Yes, sue your mother for birthing a retard.

 

[slag]

Yet, it is acceptable to "put yo ass in that puddin"

 

[preslove]

Only ignorant assholes think that MCDonalds shouldn't have lost that case. They were serving coffee at 181 F, when the industry standard was ~165F. That difference in Temp made spilling coffee on you cause SEVERE burns, instead of just make you uncomfortable. Everyone else served at the lower temp for safety reasons, while McDonalds served it at the high temp to keep the coffee fresher for longer, and to increase the coffee smell in the restaurant.

Congrats, OP, you're a fucking moron.

 

[MustISO]

The answer to "should you sue" is always yes. Find a lawyer on TV, there are lots of commercials during the day.

 

[CraKaJaX]

America. Fuck yeah.

 

[Brainonska511]

Only ignorant assholes think that MCDonalds shouldn't have lost that case. They were serving coffee at 181 F, when the industry standard was ~165F. That difference in Temp made spilling coffee on you cause SEVERE burns, instead of just make you uncomfortable. Everyone else served at the lower temp for safety reasons, while McDonalds served it at the high temp to keep the coffee fresher for longer, and to increase the coffee smell in the restaurant.

Congrats, OP, you're a fucking moron.

They also knew about the issue of their coffee burning people and paid out money to some people because of it. And the plaintiff originally asked to settle for much less (~$20k for medical expenses), which McDonald's refused.

 

[zinfamous]

That case was the biggest myth ever here is a quote from the evidence


No place should ever serve you something to drink that is so hot you need surgery if you drink it.

**Plus if I remember correctly the town they were located in warned and/or fined them multiple times about the coffee burning people. They chose to be sloppy.

Right, and it's not just the specific burn that she experienced, but it was found that McDonald's already had a long history of repeatedly defying early court cases in which they were instructed to reduce the serving temperature. It was a long, long history of negligence that lead to that lawsuit.

as to the OP: you made it yourself, dummy.

 

[zinfamous]

Only ignorant assholes think that MCDonalds shouldn't have lost that case. They were serving coffee at 181 F, when the industry standard was ~165F. That difference in Temp made spilling coffee on you cause SEVERE burns, instead of just make you uncomfortable. Everyone else served at the lower temp for safety reasons, while McDonalds served it at the high temp to keep the coffee fresher for longer, and to increase the coffee smell in the restaurant.

Congrats, OP, you're a fucking moron.

I recall some thread here several years ago, where spidey--super experienced in the coffee-serving industry (I think he managed or owned a Dunkin Donuts or something?)--schooled us all on how 181F+ was the proper, and only acceptable way to serve coffee.

It was hilarious.

 

[IGemini]

Only ignorant assholes think that MCDonalds shouldn't have lost that case. They were serving coffee at 181 F, when the industry standard was ~165F. That difference in Temp made spilling coffee on you cause SEVERE burns, instead of just make you uncomfortable. Everyone else served at the lower temp for safety reasons, while McDonalds served it at the high temp to keep the coffee fresher for longer, and to increase the coffee smell in the restaurant.

Congrats, OP, you're a fucking moron.

Yup, this.

I started drinking coffee just before the time of the McDonald's lawsuit, and remember that both their coffee and hot chocolate were always insanely hot. Apparently they've been sued more recently over the hot chocolate, too.

 

[Printer Bandit]

That case was the biggest myth ever here is a quote from the evidence


No place should ever serve you something to drink that is so hot you need surgery if you drink it.

**Plus if I remember correctly the town they were located in warned and/or fined them multiple times about the coffee burning people. They chose to be sloppy.

Liebeck died in 2004, at age 91. According to her daughter, "the burns and court proceedings (had taken) their toll" and in the years following the settlement Liebeck had "no quality of life", and that the settlement had paid for a live-in nurse.[24]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liebeck_v._McDonald's_Restaurants

 

[Scarpozzi]

I'm glad you all have such a good, sound sense of humor about this post. I'd hate to see how you react to spilled milk.

On a more serious note, the coffee had a weird aftertaste....just like the coffee they serve at McDonald's....not particularly good, but better than the typical Folgers/Maxwell House. The grind isn't as fine as 8 O'clock (what I usually buy), but still seemed to do well in my Bunn coffee pot..

 

[preslove]

I'm glad you all have such a good, sound sense of humor about this post. I'd hate to see how you react to spilled milk.

On a more serious note, the coffee had a weird aftertaste....just like the coffee they serve at McDonald's....not particularly good, but better than the typical Folgers/Maxwell House. The grind isn't as fine as 8 O'clock (what I usually buy), but still seemed to do well in my Bunn coffee pot..

Your sense of humor sucks worse than your coffee making taste/skills.

 

[Scarpozzi]

Your sense of humor sucks worse than your coffee making taste/skills.

I always struggle because good coffee is hard to come by here. We don't have any local coffee roasters and I drink enough coffee that I'm not willing to pay what it costs for good coffee....I have to make sacrifices. I started drinking it black last Summer, so I care about the flavor of the coffee and don't hide bad flavor with sugar and cream anymore.

I seriously learned a bunch about that 25 year old McDonald's case from this thread. I knew more about the one where Kramer burned himself than the actual McD's lawsuit.

 

[preslove]

I always struggle because good coffee is hard to come by here. We don't have any local coffee roasters and I drink enough coffee that I'm not willing to pay what it costs for good coffee....I have to make sacrifices. I started drinking it black last Summer, so I care about the flavor of the coffee and don't hide bad flavor with sugar and cream anymore.

I seriously learned a bunch about that 25 year old McDonald's case from this thread. I knew more about the one where Kramer burned himself than the actual McD's lawsuit.

Get a burr grinder, friend. Cheep whole bean is vastly superior to most ground coffee. Even whole bean 8 oclock is pretty good

 

[SSSnail]

Is that even coffee? I don't think you'd ever recover from that burn.

 

[Cozarkian]

The case wasnt so clear cut either way. McDonald's had a good reputation for better coffee than other fast food. There is an argument the overheating was the intended cause of that. By heating above industry standards, McDonalds argues it enhanced the flavor. By serving it too hot drink, McDonalds insured the coffee was still warm when people got to work.

I think the real mistake wasn't the dangerous business practice, it was the lack of notice.

McDonalds should have just warned customers that the coffee was too hot to drink with every cup that was served and asked if the customerwould prefer to wait for it to cool.

 

[Scarpozzi]

Get a burr grinder, friend. Cheep whole bean is vastly superior to most ground coffee. Even whole bean 8 oclock is pretty good

A friend of mine buys green coffee online and roasts his own using a hot-air corn popper. (not something you want to do outside) That's what you call dedication. I may get back to grinding coffee again...it's just a lot more time consuming/messy than what I'm doing now. With 2 young kids, you pick your battles.

 

[WHAMPOM]

I got a bag of this stuff and thought I'd give it a try. It turns out that it was WAY too hot and I suffered a pretty bad burn this morning. Should I demand millions? This isn't a joke. I'm McSerious People!

Got a $60,000 hospital bill from that burn? Or are you just ignorant of the original lawsuit?

 

[JSt0rm]

oldie but fitting

 

[Humpy]

I'm glad you all have such a good, sound sense of humor about this post. I'd hate to see how you react to spilled milk.

Milk spiller! GET HIM!