Dunkin’ Donuts hot tea cup came apart and burned NJ woman, lawsuit claims

RAMSEY — A woman who claims she suffered second-degree burns in 2014 after a Dunkin' Donuts cup of hot tea came apart is suing the company.

Samantha Dasilva's suit claims the lid came, off spilling the tea "served at a temperature not intended for human consumption," according to NJ.com, which obtained a copy of the lawsuit filed in Superior Court in Hackensack.

Dasilva is accusing the franchise owner of using a cup they knew was inferior but kept using it to "maximize sales and profits." Dasilva's left arm was burned.

It's not the first time a New Jersey resident has sued over a hot coffee or tea. In 2012, Maria Marsala, of North Plainfield, tripped over an exposed spike from a dislodged curb stop causing her to spill the coffee on her face and neck. According to NBC 4 New York, Marsala settled for $522,000

In a similar case to Dasilva's, a Florida man in 2013 sued a River Edge McDonald's when he burned himself because the lid on his coffee was not on tight.

The most famous hot-beverage litigation was the 1994 lawsuit by a 79-year-old New Mexico woman who's lap was severely burned when she accidentally spilled scalding hot coffee from McDonald's. While the lawsuit is often cited in the popular media as an example of a supposed frivolous lawsuit, the coffee served by McDonald's was in fact up to 190 degrees, hot enough to cause a serious third-degree burn on contact. About 16 pecent of Stella Liebeck's body was burned.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com.

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