Summary
A California jury awarded Michael Garcia $50 million after he suffered severe burns from a spilled Starbucks hot tea, requiring skin grafts and causing permanent disfigurement.
Garcia’s lawsuit alleged a Starbucks employee failed to secure the drink in a tray, leading to the spill. Starbucks offered a $30 million settlement with confidentiality, which Garcia rejected.
The company plans to appeal, calling the damages excessive.
The case echoes past lawsuits over hot beverage burns, including the famous McDonald’s coffee case from the 1990s.
Also, what stops drive-thrus from serving the kind of tea that you can brew at slightly cooler temp?
A fair question. Black tea is the most prevalent type of tea across the world. Recently after seeing a news story about Indian Kulhads (single use ceramic cups) I did some searching about what teas different regions drink, and most regions seem to drink regular black tea with some preferring black tea with spices. I don’t think the masses would accept 145° oolong at twice the price for the sole reason of lowering their risk of scalding burns.