16 Ridiculous Lawsuits Against Fast Food Chains
When you hear the word ‘litigious’ you probably think about big corporations like Walt Disney or Microsoft, but the little guys can be litigious too.
Published 2 weeks ago in Facepalm
When you hear the word ‘litigious’ you probably think about big corporations like Walt Disney or Microsoft, but the little guys can be litigious too. And for whatever reason, average citizens who like filing lawsuits tend to target fast food chains. Do they think they’re easy targets? Is that just the only place they patronize? The jury’s out, unlike the jury on most of these absurd cases.
From a fake finger found in Wendy’s food to a feud between Burger King and Slipknot, these fast food lawsuits are completely ridiculous. I don’t know what makes people think they can win a court case against a multimillion dollar company, much less one over a measly 20 cents, but I guess power to them. I wish I had that kind of confidence.
1
Prices may vary
A New Jersey couple filed a lawsuit against Taco Bell in 2019, alleging that they bought two of Taco Bell’s “$5 Craving Boxes” and were charged more than $5 for each. The couple requested compensation for “the time wasted driving to Taco Bell [and] the gasoline expended to drive their vehicle to the subject Taco Bell,” claiming they were “induced” to visit the fast food restaurant.
4
Full bucket
A New York woman sued KFC in 2016 for serving her a bucket that was not filled all the way to the brim with chicken. She argued since the commercial showed the bucket overflowing, this constituted false advertising. KFC offered her gift certificates in return, and she turned them down and sued, only to have the case dismissed.
5
Wendy’s finger
One of the classic fast food urban legends is a hapless customer finding a human finger or toe in their food. It did “actually” happen at Wendy’s– in a way. A woman sued Wendy’s when she found a finger in her food, but it turned out that she had planted the finger herself. It belonged to her husband’s coworker, who had lost it in a workplace accident, and gave her the finger. Both her and her husband spent time in prison.
7
Ridiculous Popeye’s sandwich lawsuit
When Popeye’s released their chicken sandwiches, the demand was so high they immediately sold out everywhere. One man on Craigslist who claimed to work for Popeye’s sold sandwiches online for $25. A ‘customer’ driving to this sandwich scalper’s house to buy a sandwich damaged his car’s rims and tires, which prompted him to sue Popeye’s for $5000. I do not understand the mental gymnastics at all.
8
Bone-in McNugget
In May 2020, a man bit into a chicken McNugget to feel a sharp pain in his mouth, discovering that the nugget contained a bone. A dentist told him that he had “micro-cracks” in his teeth, and the man sued McDonald’s for $1.1 million. I feel like the world had more important things to worry about in May of 2020.
14
To cheese or not to cheese
A Fort Lauderdale couple sued McDonald’s in 2018 over 90 cents. They noticed that McDonald’s used to have an option for a cheeseless Quarter Pounder that cost 90 cents less, but that option was gone, leaving a customer who wanted their Quarter Pounder with no cheese paying 90 cents more than they would have. McDonald’s won the suit.
16
The classic hot coffee lawsuit actually wasn’t that ridiculous
The most famous ‘frivolous’ lawsuit was in 1992 when 79-year-old Stella Liebeck’s McDonald’s coffee spilled all over her and burned her. In reality, the coffee WAS much hotter than it should have been. She suffered third degree burns, had to get skin grafts, and McDonald’s refused to reimburse her medical bills. Not so frivolous after all.