Starbucks is facing a $5 million consumer class lawsuit after a customer from Chicago accused the chain of using too much ice in its cold drinks.
Stacy Pincus, the plaintiff, says Starbucks falsely advertises its cold drinks measurements in fluid ounces. In reality, Pincus points out, the vendor's figures are accurate only after ice is added to the mix.
"Starbucks is advertising the size of its cold drink cups on its menu, rather than the amount of fluid a customer will receive when they purchase a cold drink," the suit reads. The legal action underlines that this practice is deceitful and fools customers.
To those who are not coffee drinkers, you should know that Starbucks offers four sizes of drinks – Tall, Grande, Venti and Trenta. Tall means you get 12 fluid ounces, Grande gives you 16 fluid ounces, Venti brings 24 fluid ounces to your table and Trenta delivers a full 30 fluid ounces of liquid coffee. At least, this is how the products are advertised.
According to the lawsuit, a customer who orders a Venti cold drink will not get 24 fluid ounces, but only 14 ounces of liquid. The rest is simply added ice, Pincus makes clear.
Starbucks has reacted through the voice of spokesperson Jamie Riley, who explains why the lawsuit is groundless.
"Our customers understand and expect that ice is an essential component of any 'iced' beverage," says the spokesperson. Riley goes on to say that the baristas are happy to replace a beverage, should the a customer solicit it.
Pincus claims she is ready to represent all customers who were deceived by the chilling reality during the last 10 years. She asks for damages in value of $5 million, citing fraud, negligent misrepresentation and unjust enrichment.
In a touch of irony, the customer notes that hot Starbucks beverages usually cost less than cold ones, despite containing more coffee.
The lawsuit brings back memories of a previous case where fast-food chain McDonald's was sued by a customer in 1992. The customer's complaint was that the drive-through coffee was unnecessarily hot, scolding him.
Starbucks is the biggest coffee retailer in the world, counting over 24,000 stores in more than 70 countries, 11,000 of which are in the United States.
Reports of underfilled Latte drinks caused uproar among Starbucks' clients in March 2016, and led to some filing class-action lawsuits against the coffee shop chain.
