$5M Over 2 Slices of Cheese

McDonald's Sued for $5M Over 2 Slices of Cheese

Lawyer says up to 25M customers may have been subject to unfair charge

By Arden Dier,  Newser Staff

A McDonald's Quarter Pounder, left, and Double Quarter Pounder, shown in Atlanta.   (AP Photo/Mike Stewart, File)

They didn't want cheese on their Quarter Pounders. They claim they had to pay for it anyway—a cost of up to $1—and now want $5 million for the trouble. That's according to a new lawsuit filed by two Florida residents against McDonald's, which should be used to such fights by now.


It came after Leonard Werner says he realized McDonald's was repeatedly charging him for a Quarter Pounder with Cheese, but giving him a cheese-less sandwich, as he requested. "I started talking with some lawyer friends, saying, 'What's the deal? They can charge for something I didn't get?' It's not right," Werner says, per the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. According to Werner, McDonald's restaurant menus no longer feature a cheese-less Quarter Pounder, but its app menu does, at a reduced cost of 30 cents to $1.

Restaurant customers are therefore "being forced to pay for two slices of cheese, which they do not want, order, or receive, to be able to purchase their desired product," the suit says. One of the attorneys who filed the suit, which is seeking class-action status, explains people who order a Big Mac with items left off "are not entitled to a credit against the purchase price" because the burger is trademarked according to its ingredients, per the Miami Herald. He says that's not the case with the Quarter Pounder, since a cheese-less option is sold. Another lawyer involved says up to 25 million customers may have been overcharged and could be eligible to receive $10 and a free sandwich should a judge side with the plaintiffs. McDonald's doesn't expect that to happen, claiming the suit is without legal merit.