When most people hear about hot coffee spills – and the accompanying lawsuits involved – the first thing they think of is the infamous fast-food lawsuit from the 90’s. Although that case brought awareness to the dangers of hot coffee, it also set a precedent for misunderstanding the most critical points that lawyers should stake their argument on in a lawsuit over a hot coffee drive-thru spill.
To refresh your memory, that case involved a 79-year-old woman in Albuquerque, New Mexico, whose grandson drove her to McDonald’s in 1992. I was not a part of this case, but my understanding is that she was in a parked car when the coffee spilled. She had the coffee between her legs and removed the lid to add creamer and sugar when the scalding liquid spilled in her lap, causing “third-degree burns on her legs and genitals, nearly killing her and requiring extensive surgery to treat.”
She acknowledged that the spill was her fault; the issue at hand was that everyone seemingly had the opinion that the coffee was dangerously hot – “at up to 190 degrees Fahrenheit, near boiling point.”
The fast-food chain knew – and sort of admitted – that the coffee was dangerous being served at that high of a temperature. (The over 700 reports they received in the ten years prior to this incident of people being burned by their coffee might have given them a little bit of a clue.)
But even though they acknowledged this hazard, they continued to do it. “(The victim) didn’t really want to go to court. She just wanted (the chain) to pay her medical expenses, estimated at roughly $20,000. (The fast-food company) supposedly only offered $800, leading her to file a lawsuit.”
“After hearing the evidence, the jury concluded that (the fast-food chain’s) handling of its coffee was so irresponsible that (she) should get much more than $20,000, suggesting she get nearly $2.9 million to send the company a message. (She) settled for less than $600,000.” After they were forced to pay the victim in this lawsuit, the chain and the industry had a problem of epic proportions.
I’m not able to speak with specificity regarding this matter or whether or not the account that I just gave you was completely accurate – I will leave that to you to research for yourself.
But I can tell you this: this case would have been significantly different today, as would have been the outcome.
Today, you could never win a lawsuit of this nature based on temperature alone.
Because to properly brew coffee, the liquid must reach temperatures between 190-200 degrees. The restaurant industry standard for serving coffee is 180 +/- 10 degrees. The health department requires that restaurants cook hot food (or drink) to 140 degrees or higher. But even if the coffee was only 140 degrees, it’s still going to cause significant damage if spilled onto skin. In fact, hot coffee coming in contact with human skin can cause a third-degree burn in one second if the coffee is at 156 degrees Fahrenheit and in two seconds if the hot coffee is at 149 degrees Fahrenheit.
Your bathroom shower is around 120-125 degrees at its highest setting and that can even run you out screaming. If you took a shower at 140 degrees, your skin would literally be peeling off, and you would likely die after going into shock. The temperature of the coffee is a factor, yes, but it’s not the main factor, and it’s not how your case will be won.
It is hot was because it must be so to meet food service standards. Hot coffee is and should be hot and should be labelled as such.
Hot coffee in a word is – hot.
In two words it is – super hot.
The industry standard is clear, and the decisions handed down from courts across the land are clear – hot coffee and hot tea must be served hot, and at the temperature it is served, it will scald you if it comes into contact with human skin.
Everyone working in the restaurant industry either does, or should, reasonably know that.
Even though every personal injury attorney wants to argue here and claim that the coffee that their client got was much too hot and that is why their client was injured in the first place – that is simply wrong, and that argument can never reasonably hold water. Instead, it is likely to proverbially spill its scalding contents into your lap in the form of a lost case. And that is a scalding pain of its own.
The health department and the coffee brewing people determine those temperatures and standards – and for the most part, restaurant people are simply expected to comply.
The real problem is much deeper and much more complex than this and throughout this book we will explore some of them using the training, education, experience, and research conducted through our organization SPIHLs: Spill Prevention Institute – Hot Liquid Safety Standards.
I would love to give them all to you, but the reality is my space is limited and I am not able to point out every standard and every hurdle here… but I will try my best to point out some of the biggies.
If temperature is your only argument – you will likely lose the case. Period!
-From the Intro to Howard Cannon‘s upcoming book Coffee Burns in Drive-Thrus©
Got a coffee burn case?
Call us today:
800.300.5764