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$50,000 for a cup of Starbucks coffee?

Published: 2026-02-23 Author: World Gafei

Last Updated: 2026/02/23, Matthew Cole, a police officer in Raleigh, North Carolina, asked for a free cup of coffee at a Starbucks in 2012, but the lid fell off and Cole was scalded. The pain affected his spirit and mood, caused enteritis and had to undergo surgery to remove a section of his intestine. Cole said that this series of events made his wife lose her emotional support, social partner and intimate partner. The couple turned to the law.

Matthew Cole, a police officer in Raleigh, North Carolina, asked for a free cup of coffee at a Starbucks in 2012. The lid fell off and Cole was scalded. The pain affected his spirit and mood, caused enteritis and had to undergo surgery to remove a section of his intestine. Cole said that this series of events made his wife lose "emotional support, social partners and intimate partners." The couple sued the court for $50,000 in compensation, including medical and legal fees. Starbucks did not agree to the compensation on the grounds that Cole drank free coffee and did not apply to the warranty rules. Lawyers for Starbucks also stressed that it was a low-probability incident, and that the coffee chain giant sold about 4 billion cups of coffee a year, with only 59 similar incidents. In 2010, a customer in New York suffered secondary burns after buying a Starbucks cup for tea, then filed a lawsuit, saying the tea was "too hot" and the design of the cup was "unsafe". Hui Xiaoshuang (according to the special draft of Xinhua News Agency)

Source: evening News (Tianjin)