Four plaintiffs have decided to take on the fast-food chain in a class action lawsuit for allegedly misleading customers by exaggerating the size of its menu items in advertisements.
The lawsuit, which was filed in the US District Court in Miami, alleges that Burger King is deceiving customers “based on false and misleading advertising concerning the size and/or the amount of ingredients contained in said menu item”.
The legal filing claims BK began to “materially overstate the size of its burgers in its advertisements in 2017”.
Images tendered to the court.
Using side-by-side comparisons of Burger King’s Whopper, the suit asserts that the fast-food chain’s advertisements deceived customers by promising a burger that was 35 percent bigger.
“Although the size of the Whopper increased materially in Burger King’s advertisements, the recipe or the amount of beef or ingredients contained in Burger King’s Whopper has never changed,” the lawsuit claims.
In addition to the Whopper, the filing includes photographs of an actual Big King sandwich compared to current ads, declaring that BK “overstates the size of nearly every menu item in its current advertisements”.
The four plaintiffs, Walter Coleman, Marco DiLeonardo, Matthew Fox and Madelyn Salzman are representing anyone who “purchased a Burger King menu item based on false and misleading advertising concerning the size and/or the amount of ingredients contained in said menu item”.
“Burger King’s actions are especially concerning now that inflation, food and meat prices are very high and many consumers, especially lower income consumers, are struggling financially,” the lawsuit reads.
“Burger King’s promise to consumers of a large portion of food with their purchase is also causing consumers to come to, or order from, Burger King and make purchases that they would not have otherwise made.”
The lawsuit seeks unspecified monetary damages, while requesting an order that prevents Burger King from selling the menu items. Above all, the suit looks to “correct the deceptive behaviour” the company exhibits in its advertisements.
