Should he sue McDonald's?

Source: Jurij Kenda on Unsplash 

Teen, 17, suffers horrific burns when McDonald's tea spills on his leg

A teenager is considering sueing McDonald's after being left with horrific burns from a cup of tea when it spilled over his right leg.

Ben Lewis, 17, cannot work, drive, or shower easily due to the burns - which he is worried may scar him for life.

His family is now thinking of taking legal action against the fast food giant.

Ben needed urgent hospital treatment after the lid came off the cup when the car he was in went over a 5mph speed bump as he and his girlfriend left a McDonald's drive-thru in Newtown, Powys, on Friday.

The car was being driven by his girlfriend, Victoria Bennett, who then drove him straight to her house for a cold shower to calm the wound.

However Ben started screaming in pain so she then took him to Welshpool Hospital where he received treatment for his burns.

His leg is now covered in blisters.

The teenager, who works in his mother's nightclub, is now unable to drive and cannot even take a shower without wrapping the painful burn in bandages.

He has had to take time off work is not expected to go back for at least two weeks.

Ben, from Telford, Shropshire, said: 'It's so dangerous, it could have been a baby or a young child that was burnt, and that would have been so much worse.

'Obviously the lid wasn't properly put on the tea. It only took going over a speedbump to get tea all over me.

'It was incredibly painful, I screamed when it happened and yanked my trousers down to stop them sticking to me.

'I went immediately to my girlfriend's house, where I had a cold shower and had to go to the hospital that night. I took some powerful painkillers, and had my leg wrapped in clingfilm, to protect the burns.

'I'm going to have to go back to hospital at some point.

'The blisters have gone down a bit now, but it's still so painful and sore. I've been worried about bursting the blisters and causing scarring.

'I've been told that the blisters won't go for another month or so and who knows what my leg will look like after that.

'It's scary that they serve tea at that temperature with lids that aren't put on right.'

His father, Tony Lewis, said: 'I think we should sue them. McDonald's shouldn't be able to get away with this.

'What happened was absolutely horrific and he can't even walk at the moment. The tea must have exceeded the maximum heat that it's meant to be served at.

'They shouldn't be able to get away with it*, and they won't get away with it I hope. I'll be in contact with a solicitor shortly.

A McDonald's spokesman said: 'We are very sorry to hear of this accident. We will launch an urgent investigation to ensure our usual safety safeguards are in force.'

It's not the first time McDonald's has come under fire for the temperature of its drinks.

In an infamous U.S. case in 1992, 79-year-old Stella Liebeck won just over £2million from the fast food giant after being scalded by a cup of coffee she had ordered from the drive-thru.


Do you think he should sue McDonald's? Do you think he would win?

Can you think of any other controversial cases of suing?

Phrasal Verbs:

*to get away with: you don't get caught, punished or criticised for doing something wrong.
  • I arrived late for work this morning again but I got away with it. The boss wasnt in today (I wasn't caught)
  • If the police can't find proof that he committed the crime, he might get away with it. (he won't get punished)
  • He got away with a warning. (he only got a warning, the consequences could have been worse)
  • Can I get away with wearing jeans to the opera? (will anyone criticise me for wearing jeans?)
  • The children get away with murder. (they misbehave and can do all kinds of bad things but they go unpunished)
Have you ever got away with someone or know someone that has?

Comments

Estela said…
In my opinion, this teenager shouldn´t sue McDonald because this kind of things are possible.
It is considered to be an accident.
Obviously, you always must be careful with hot drinks. In my opinion, if you spill the tea, it´s your fault. You must not blame the others for it.
Marta said…
Seven years ago a ship laden with crude oil had broke up in front of the coasts of Galicia. Tons of the pollutant liquid were spilt to the ocean and reached the coast. The owner of the ship and the politicians in charge at that moment were sued but, did anoybody pay for that or they got away with it?
Graham said…
Hi Estela,

Have you clicked on the link to the story about Stella Liebeck? She made a fortune after suing McDonald's. This teenager might have read the story and thought he could get rich quick by doing the same.

Obviously, you MUST ALWAYS be careful with hot drinks.

I think I will sue your school if I have an accident walking along the polished floor. Plus the corridors are so dark. I think I'd win the case. :-)
Graham said…
I haven't heard The Prestige mentioned in the media in ages. It was a huge disaster.

I have googled it to find out more info. It seems that nobody will accept responsibility for what happened.

According to Wikipedia (not the most reliable source of info), the Spanish, Portuguese and French governments passed the buck.

Could the tragedy have been avoided? Nunca mais or could it happen again?
Estela said…
Hi, Graham:

I have been doing the exercises from another page today, because I have to complete it for the school.
Now I have finished reading the text about Stella Liebeck and I´ve been listening four episodes of The flatmates. Thank you for yor help.
Graham said…
Hi Estela,

I really hope that with all the effort you are putting in that you feel results.

I am a bit worried about the style of the "habilitación". I don't think it accurately reflects what you have learned.

Between now and July, we'll make an extra effort to get this exam out of the way.
Estela said…
Hi Graham:

I´m triying to learn by heart all the linkers we were talking about the other day. I knew some of them but I had never employ the others.

See you tomorrow.
Graham said…
Many of them mean the same thing but some of them are only used in formal contexts. We'll practice them tomorrow and I'll try to post something to do here on the blog.