Burger King, McDonalds, Taco Bell and Wendy’s are among fast food chains hit by a 375% increase in class action lawsuits for false advertising as legal experts say they have crossed the line from ‘puffiness’ to ‘cheating’
- Many of America’s best-known brands are facing multi-million dollar lawsuits over claims that they mislead customers
- Comes after Dr Pepper settled for $15 million for falsely claiming its synthetic-flavored soda was “made with aged vanilla”
Lawyers have warned fast food companies that angry consumers will feast on their profits unless they stop misleading the public about their products.
Burger King, Taco Bell and McDonalds could face multi-million dollar payouts as a result of a growing wave of lawsuits against some of America’s best-known brands.
It comes after beverage maker A&W and Keurig Dr Pepper agreed to pay out $15 million in July 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 their boneless chicken wings that are not made from boneless chicken wings.
“There is a legal limit. When is it inflated 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 was under no obligation to provide burgers that “look exactly like the picture.” Pictured here is a restaurant in Daly City, California
New York plaintiffs submitted photos of the vegetarian Mexican pizzas they served (right), as well as the advertisements that persuaded them to buy
Buffalo Wild Wings emphasizes that customers are not being misled by the fact that the “boneless chicken wings” are not made from chicken wings
‘Companies always try to push against that limit.’
Class actions against food and beverage companies have risen from 45 in 2010 to 214 last year, mainly due to false advertising or misleading consumers.
Last week, a Miami judge allowed prosecutors to sue Burger King for $5 million over claims it portrayed its Whopper burgers 35 percent larger in ads than they actually are.
U.S. District Judge Roy Altman said the company must defend the claim and it is up to the jurors to “tell us what reasonable people think.”
But he warned plaintiffs that television or online advertisements do not constitute a “binding offer” if they do not include price or product information.
A Burger King spokesperson told DailyMail.com: “The plaintiffs’ allegations are false. The fire-grilled beef patties featured in our ads are the same patties used in the millions of Whopper sandwiches we serve to diners nationwide.”
McDonald’s and Wendy’s are defending a similar lawsuit in federal court in Brooklyn, New York.
And Taco Bell, a division of Yum Brands, was sued in Brooklyn court last month for selling Crunchwraps and Mexican pizzas that reportedly contain only half as much filling as advertised.
The lawsuit is seeking at least $5 million for Taco Bell customers who have purchased the items in upstate New York over the past three years.
Ben Michael, a criminal defense attorney in Austin, Texas, said the recent wave of inflation may have tempted companies to cut back by limiting 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.
“This opens them up to the kind of lawsuits we’ve seen before.”
But some companies have hit back at the lawsuits, including Dunkin’, which successfully fought a 2020 case accusing the company of deception over claims its wraps contained Angus steak, rather than just ground meat.
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 to pay $15 million in July for cans labeled “made with aged vanilla,” when the soda inside actually contained synthetic flavorings.
Wendy’s is being sued over its Bourbon Bacon Cheeseburger and McDonalds is being sued over its Big Mac
Buffalo Wild Wings made a defiant comment about the lawsuit
And Buffalo Wild Wings ridiculed its accusers and demanded it say what’s in its products.
“It’s true,” they tweeted.
“Our boneless wings are all white meat chicken. Our burgers do not contain ham.
“Our buffalo wings are 0% buffalo.”