Lawyers have warned fast-food companies that angry consumers will feast on their profits if they don’t stop misleading the public about their products.
Burger King, Taco Bell and McDonalds could all face multimillion-dollar payouts from a growing spate of lawsuits against some of America’s best-known brands.
This came after beverage maker A&W and Keurig Dr. Pepper agreed in July to pay out $15 million for cans labeled “Made with Aged Vanilla” when the soda inside actually contained synthetic flavorings.
And Buffalo Wild Wings is being sued in Chicago for its boneless chicken wings, which aren’t made with boneless chicken wings.
“There’s a legal limit.” When is it puff and when is it cheating? said marketing professor Jeff Galak of Carnegie Mellon University’s Tepper School of Business.
Burger King has countered that it doesn’t need to deliver burgers that look “exactly like the picture.” Pictured here is a restaurant in Daly City, California
Plaintiffs in New York have submitted photos of the Mexican veggie pizzas they were served (right) and the advertisements that persuaded them to buy
Buffalo Wild Wings insists that customers are not misled by the fact that its “boneless chicken wings” are not made with chicken wings
“Companies are always trying to move in the opposite direction.”
Class-action lawsuits against food and drink companies have increased from 45 in 2010 to 214 last year, mostly for false advertising or misleading consumers.
Last week, a Miami judge gave plaintiffs the green light to sue Burger King for $5 million over allegations that the company advertised its Whopper burgers as 35 percent larger than they actually are.
US District Judge Roy Altman said the company must defend the lawsuit and that it was up to the jury “to tell us what reasonable people think.”
However, he warned the plaintiffs that TV or online advertisements do not constitute a “binding offer” if they do not contain a price or product information.
A Burger King spokesman told DailyMail.com: “The plaintiffs’ allegations are false.” Serving guests across the country.”
McDonald’s and Wendy’s are defending a similar lawsuit in federal court in Brooklyn, New York.
And Taco Bell, a unit of Yum Brands, was sued in a Brooklyn court last month for selling crunch wraps and Mexican pizzas that allegedly had half the filling as advertised.
The lawsuit seeks at least $5 million for Taco Bell customers who purchased the items in upstate New York within the past three years.
Ben Michael, a criminal defense attorney in Austin, Texas, said the recent wave of inflation may have enticed companies to cut corners and reduce portion sizes.
“Unfortunately, many companies are making these changes without consulting their marketing department or updating their menus to reflect new serving sizes and ingredients,” he said CBS.
“That makes them vulnerable to the kind of lawsuits we’ve seen more commonly.”
But some companies have hit back at the lawsuits, including Dunkin’, which successfully fought off a 2020 case in which the company was accused of deception by claiming its wraps contained Angus steak rather than just ground beef.
Buffalo Wild Wings is being sued for its boneless chicken wings, and Taco Bell is being sued for its Mexican pizza, vegetarian Mexican pizza, Crunchwrap Supreme, Grande Crunchwrap, and Vegan Crunchwrap
Beverage company A&W and Keurig Dr. Pepper agreed in July to pay $15 million for cans labeled “Made with Aged Vanilla,” even though the soda inside actually contained synthetic flavorings.
Wendy’s is being sued for its Bourbon Bacon Cheeseburger and McDonald’s is being sued for its Big Mac
The Buffalo Wild Wings have come out defiantly about the lawsuit
And Buffalo Wild Wings poked fun at its accusers, demanding that the company say what went into its products.
“It’s true,” they tweeted.
“Our boneless wings are made entirely from white-meat chicken. Our hamburgers do not contain ham.
“Our Buffalo Wings are 0% Buffalo.”
