A California jury has ordered Starbucks to pay a delivery driver $50 million after hot tea spilled into his lap, causing severe burns.
Surveillance video from a Los Angeles drive-thru showed a barista handing the man a drink carrier containing three teas, one of which appeared unsecured. The cup spilled, resulting in third-degree burns on the man's genitals and groin.
His lawyers claimed Starbucks had a "flagrant disregard for customer safety."
"$50 million for a third-degree burn. I was shocked. At first, I thought to myself, why is it so large? But then, when I looked at the actual injuries, and also a way to try to kind of send a message to Starbucks," said Brian Buckmire, ABC News legal contributor.
The case is reminiscent of a landmark judgment against McDonald's in 1994, when hot coffee spilled onto a woman's lap. Stella Liebeck, who was burned by McDonald's coffee, said, "I screamed, not realizing I was burned that bad, I was in terrible pain." She suffered third-degree burns and won a nearly $3 million judgment, which was later reduced and settled out of court.
In the Starbucks case, the plaintiff's lawyer said he agreed to settle for $30 million if Starbucks would apologize and change its policies to prevent such incidents. However, Starbucks declined.
In a statement, Starbucks said it sympathizes with the man, "but we disagree with the jury's decision that we were at fault for this incident and believe the damages awarded to be excessive."
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