Get All Access for $5/mo

'Walking Still Causes Her Pain': Elderly Woman Awarded $3 Million Settlement From Dunkin' After Drive-Thru Coffee Spill The incident happened in February 2021 in the Atlanta area.

By Emily Rella

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Sometimes, it's worth crying over spilled coffee.

A woman in Atlanta will receive $3 million from a Dunkin' franchisee after being burned by a hot coffee spill in the drive-thru.

The 70-year-old customer went through the drive-thru in February 2021 and was handed a coffee through the window without a securely tightened lid. The coffee spilled all over her legs and chest, causing third-degree burns that resulted in nearly $200,000 worth of medical bills, including skin grafts and re-learning how to walk.

Related: Florida Family Awarded $800,000 After Suing McDonald's When Their 4-Year-Old Was Allegedly Burned and 'Disfigured' By a Chicken Nugget

The woman and her legal team claimed that the burns were the result of the Dunkin' employee failing to properly secure the lid on the cup of coffee, which caused it to fly off when the woman grabbed the cup.

"America may run on Dunkin, but our client had to re-learn how to walk due to the severity of her burns," said Benjamin Welch of Morgan & Morgan, who is representing the victim. "Her burns were so severe that she spent weeks in the burn unit at Grady Health and has had to entirely alter the way she lives her life. Walking still causes her pain, she can't go out in the sun, and she must apply creams and ointments to her burns several times a day."

The case is infamously not the first of its kind.

In 1992, a woman named Stella Liebeck sued McDonald's and won $2.7 million by a jury for burns she received after hot coffee was spilled in her lap.

Earlier this summer, a Florida family also sued McDonald's and was awarded $800,000 after their four-year-old daughter allegedly received severe burns from chicken nuggets in 2019.

Dunkin' Donuts did not immediately respond to Entrepreneur's request for comment, though the franchisee that will pay out the settlement is Golden Donuts, LLC.

Related: 'Nobody Helped Her Whatsoever': Elderly Woman Sues McDonald's For 'Severe Burns' After Spilling Hot Coffee

Emily Rella

Senior News Writer

Emily Rella is a Senior News Writer at Entrepreneur.com. Previously, she was an editor at Verizon Media. Her coverage spans features, business, lifestyle, tech, entertainment, and lifestyle. She is a 2015 graduate of Boston College and a Ridgefield, CT native. Find her on Twitter at @EmilyKRella.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Editor's Pick

Business News

'I'm Not Trying to Land on Mars': Mark Cuban Takes Dig at Elon Musk to Explain Why His Online Pharmacy Isn't Trying to Make More Money

Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Co. is an online pharmacy co-founded by Cuban and radiologist Alex Oshmyansky.

Side Hustle

'Hustling Every Day': These Friends Started a Side Hustle With $2,500 Each — It 'Snowballed' to Over $500,000 and Became a Multimillion-Dollar Brand

Paris Emily Nicholson and Saskia Teje Jenkins had a 2020 brainstorm session that led to a lucrative business.

Business News

'It's Not About You': How to Fire Someone Effectively, According to Kevin O'Leary

O'Leary says that if you can't fire someone, you aren't the right leader for the organization.

Business News

Meta Makes $1 Million Dollar Donation to Donald Trump's Inaugural Fund

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg also reportedly gave Trump a pair of Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses.

Business Ideas

63 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2024

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2024.

Leadership

Should I Stay or Should I Go? 8 Key Points to Navigate the Founder's Dilemma

Here are eight key signs that help founders determine whether to persevere or let go.