Another Starbucks Customer Alleges Burns Suffered From Defective Cup

LOS ANGELES (CNS) - Another Starbucks customer filed court papers today alleging she suffered severe burns resulting from a defective hot beverage cup at a store in Cerritos.

Ana Alvidrez's still unofficial Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit alleges negligence, negligent hiring as well as premises liability, strict liability and negligent products liability. She seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages.

A Starbucks representative did not immediately reply to a request for comment Wednesday.

Starbucks has willfully served and continues to serve scalding hot beverages in cups that are structurally defective and prone to ``buckling, folding, collapsing or otherwise failing,'' allowing the contents to spill onto consumers, the court papers state.

``Ms. Alvidrez is now one of those victims,'' according to the court papers.

A Starbucks drive-through employee handed Alvidrez a cup through a window at the store in the 15900 block of Studebaker Road on March 26 and as the plaintiff tried to put the container in her cup holder it folded inward and flipped forward, spilling hot liquid on the woman's lap, legs, inner thighs and groin, the court papers allege.

Alvidrez allegedly suffered second-degree burns to her inner thighs and groin and was left with permanent scarring and skin discoloration.

The court papers further state that Starbucks should have used sturdier cups and warned consumers of the potential failure of their containers.

In 2025, a Los Angeles Superior Court jury ordered Starbucks to pay $50 million to a Postmates delivery driver who suffered severe, permanent injuries after a drive-thru employee handed him an unsecured cup of hot tea that spilled onto his lap. Multiple other hot liquid spill lawsuits against Starbucks are pending trial.