Woman Suing Over Dunkin’ Hot Apple Cider – Money Grab? [POLL]

If a product is marketed at “hot,” generally that should warn the consumer as to the temperature of said product.

Hot Chocolate.

Hot Coffee.

Hot Apple Cider.

They’re all marketed to be hot, and due to the 1994 landmark lawsuit against McDonalds by a woman scalded by a cup of hot coffee – a warning label is affixed to the cup stating that the contents are indeed “hot!”

Apparently customers still may not have gotten the message.
According to this:

In a case reminiscent of the 1994 McDonald's hot coffee case that became a flash point for tort reform, a New Jersey woman is suing Dunkin' Donuts over severe burns she claims to have suffered when the lid on her hot apple cider dislodged and the excessively hot contents spilled on her.

Jennifer Fragoso claims the cider was heated "beyond industry standards to the point where patrons could not safely consume it because it was not reasonably fit, suitable or safe for its intended purpose."

She filed suit in Superior Court in Essex County against Dunkin' Donuts and Anju Donuts, the owner-operator of the Belleville franchise where the accident allegedly took place.

The suit includes counts for negligence, failure to warn and breach of express and implied warranties.

So as I sit here and ponder the wonderful cup of Dunkin Donuts coffee I just purchased, I wonder how long it will be until places that serve hot food will no longer be doing so – due to the risk of liability.

Yes, there may be fault on the part of the merchant for selling hot food that’s too hot (I say “may be”) and for serving it in a cup where the lid becomes too easily dislodged; but where in this exercise do the words “common sense” come in.

As long as there’s a buck to be made, that inconvenient truth goes out the window.