Most McDonald’s customers consider it a win when their French fries arrive hot and fresh. One New York woman, however, claims her fries were so dangerously overheated that they caused serious injuries and left her unable to carry out her normal daily activities.
The woman is suing McDonald’s over an order she purchased at a restaurant across from Bryant Park in Midtown Manhattan, according to The Independent.
In the lawsuit, she alleges that McDonald’s employees acted with “carelessness, recklessness and negligence” by failing to provide her with a safe order of fries.
The complaint claims she should never have been allowed to receive and eat fries that were “extremely hot and overheated.” It also argues that McDonald’s failed to adequately warn her about the potential dangers of consuming the food.
According to the lawsuit, the incident happened entirely because of the defendants’ negligence and through no fault or lack of care on the woman’s part.
She claims the fries injured her mouth and tongue and caused “a severe shock to the nervous system.”
The woman also alleges that she suffered intense physical pain and mental anguish following the incident. She claims she was confined to her bed and home and was forced to stop participating in her usual work, responsibilities and everyday activities.
The lawsuit further states that some of her injuries may be permanent and long-lasting.
She is seeking damages in an amount that exceeds the financial limits of New York’s lower courts, though the reported filing did not specify an exact dollar figure.
McDonald’s has faced several other unusual food-related lawsuits in recent months.
Earlier this year, the fast-food chain was named in a proposed class-action lawsuit alleging that the McRib’s name and appearance mislead customers into believing the sandwich contains actual pork rib meat.
The lawsuit claimed the McRib is instead made from lower-grade pork products, allegedly including pork shoulder, heart, tripe and scalded stomach.
“Despite its name and distinctive shape — its meat patty has been deliberately crafted to resemble a rack of pork ribs — the McRib does not contain any actual pork rib meat at all,” the complaint stated.
The lawsuit argued that the McRib’s name and rib-shaped patty are major reasons customers continue buying the sandwich whenever McDonald’s brings it back for a limited time.
“It is precisely these misleading attributes that drive sales of the sandwich, which is why McDonald’s continues to bring it back time after time,” the filing alleged.
McDonald’s was also sued last month by a New York City tourist who claimed she was served a McMuffin that was “wholly unfit for human consumption.”
In that case, the woman alleged the breakfast sandwich made her violently ill and nauseated and caused severe pain and distress throughout her body.
She further claimed that her physical, nervous and mental systems were seriously and permanently injured.
