ST. LOUIS – A minor says he was severely injured when hot coffee was spilled in his lap while visiting a McDonald’s drive-thru.
The complaint is reminiscent of a famous 1994 case in which a 79-year-old New Mexico woman who suffered third-degree burns when hot coffee also was spilled in her lap at a McDonald’s drive-thru.
The plaintiff, identified only as D.P.O., and his next friend Katarina O’Reilly filed the complaint April 30 in St. Louis County Circuit Court against McDonalds Corporation and Banducci Enterprises Inc., which owns and operates the store on Manchester Road in Ballwin.
According to his complaint, D.P.O. was visiting the McDonald’s in Ballwin on December 5, 2021, when he went through the drive-thru. He says hot coffee was spilled on his lap, causing him second degree burns to his thighs and genitals.
He says the defendants had a duty to exercise ordinary care in the training of their staff in the preparation, handling and serving of food and beverages. That includes ensuring coffee is served at a safe temperature, lids on said beverages are properly secured and beverages are secured in cup trays and beverage carriers provided.
He says the defendants knowingly served coffee at an unreasonably high and unsafe temperature “far above industry standards,” did not securely fasten the lid of each hot beverage served, served the drinks in a beverage container that was not structurally sound or was flawed in design, handed over the hot beverages to him without beverages being properly secured in the cup tray or beverage carrier and failed to train its employees in the safe service and handling of the hot drinks.
As a result of his injuries, D.P.O. says he required medical treatment and will require treatment in the future. He says it has resulted in a loss of quality of life, mental distress and permanent scarring.
He seeks compensatory damages in excess of $25,000.
D.P.O. is being represented by Alexander A. Wolff and Barry N. Moore Jr. of Goldblatt & Singer in St. Louis.
In the 1994 case, Stella Liebeck accidentally spilled the hot coffee in her lap and suffered third-degree burns. She was hospitalized for eight days while undergoing skin grafting and had two years of medical treatment. She tried to settle with McDonald’s for $20,000 to cover her medical expenses, but the company refused.
She then filed a federal lawsuit accusing McDonald’s of gross negligence. A jury found McDonald’s was 80 percent responsible and awarded Liebeck $160,000 in medical expenses and $2.7 million in punitive damages. The judge reduced the punitive damages to three times the amount of compensatory damages, or $640,000. The parties later settled for a confidential amount before an appeal was decided.
St. Louis County Circuit Court case number 25SL-CC04639