US man burnt by hot tea at Starbucks awarded Rs 433 crore in damages

The victim filed a lawsuit against the coffee chain after tea spilled in his lap at a drive-thru, resulting in permanent disfigurement to his penis.

By: Trends Desk

New Delhi | Updated: March 18, 2025 09:26 AM IST

3 min read

A review of Starbucks locations revealed that many are falling short of financial performance targets or are failing to create the environment customers expect(Representational image/@dexerto/X)

A California delivery driver was awarded $50 million (approximately Rs 433 crore) in damages after a jury found that a Starbucks location was negligent in handling scalding hot tea. Michael Garcia filed a lawsuit against the coffee chain after tea spilled in his lap at a drive-thru, resulting in permanent disfigurement to his penis, The Guardian reported. The incident occurred on February 8, 2020.

His lawyers stated in a press release that Garcia’s “life has been permanently altered” by the incident. In a statement on Instagram, his lawyers stated, “After a hospitalisation and multiple skin grafts, Michael has lived for five years with the disfigurement, pain, dysfunction, and psychological harm caused by the burns.”

According to his lawyers, Garcia worked as a Postmates delivery driver on February 8, 2020, when he went to a Starbucks in Los Angeles to pick up three venti “medicine ball” teas. At the drive-thru, he received a cardboard carrier with the drinks, but one of the cups fell into his lap, causing the top of one drink to come off, USA Today reported.

In a video shared by Sky News, Garcia is visibly in excruciating pain as the beverage spills onto his lap.

Watch here:

The video amassed nearly four million views, prompting a range of reactions, with one user saying, “Why is Starbucks or anyone else responsible for paying for this? I feel bad for him but it’s no one’s fault but his own.” Another user commented, “He dropped the drink on himself. This verdict will be overturned.”

“Why ?.. She had let go of the tray, he had it in his hands. It was then his responsibility.. Why pay out ???” a third user reacted.

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Starbucks intends to appeal by emphasising that it has consistently upheld the highest safety standards in its stores. “We sympathize with Mr. Garcia, but we disagree with the jury’s decision that we were at fault for this incident and believe the damages awarded to be excessive,” Starbucks said in a statement, as reported by NBC News.

In April last year, a former employee at JP Morgan received $35 million (approx Rs 292 crore) as compensation after the glass door of a building in New York City shattered on her. The incident, which occurred in 2015, caused her permanent brain damage.

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