McDonald's Is Getting Sued Over Yet Another Coffee Burn Incident

Another McDonald's customer has reported suffering serious burns due to McDonald's coffee. According to a lawsuit filed on Sept. 14, an elderly woman, Mable Childress, received a cup of coffee from a McDonald's drive-thru in San Francisco that she claims wasn't properly secured. Today reports that the coffee spilled as she attempted to take a sip, resulting in "severe burns and emotional distress," per the lawsuit. The suit also accuses McDonald's workers and the location's managers of refusing to assist the woman. 

Childress' lawyer told SFGate that she was denied help inside the restaurant and had to drive herself to the hospital. In response, the location's owner and operator, Peter Ou, issued a statement to The San Francisco Standard and Today, which read in part, "My restaurants have strict food safety protocols in place, including training crew to ensure lids on hot beverages are secure. We take every customer complaint seriously — and when Ms. Childress reported her experience to us later that day, our employees and management team spoke to her within a few minutes and offered assistance. We're reviewing this new legal claim in detail."

If this case sparks a bit of deja vu, it's because it resembles the famous 1990s McDonald's coffee lawsuit filed by 79-year-old Stella Liebeck, who suffered third-degree burns from McDonald's coffee (and won her case). However, it isn't the only lawsuit the chain has seen related to its coffee in recent years.

Several other cases have been filed against the fast-food giant related to its hot coffee. In one instance, a 4-year-old child was mistakenly given a hot cup of coffee to hand to her grandmother, resulting in severe burns, an action that was against company policy.

Shockingly, McDonald's hasn't made significant changes to the temperature at which it serves coffee despite these lawsuits. The New York Times notes that the chain has only lowered it by 10 degrees since the Stella Liebeck case. 

The National Coffee Association recommends brewing coffee at nearly boiling, 200 degrees Fahrenheit. However, the group does mention that studies have shown most people drink it at about 140 degrees. Although McDonald's coffee comes with a warning, failure to secure the lid could impact the outcome of this case, especially considering the high temperature of the liquid. Consumer Attorneys of California points out that coffee served at a temperature of 180-190 degrees Fahrenheit can cause third-degree burns in just three to seven seconds.