Woman sues Dunkin' Donuts over alleged spilled "scalding" hot coffee — and the humiliation she says followed
Brockton, Massachusetts — A woman who says she was burned by "scalding" hot coffee at a Brockton Dunkin' Donuts location is suing the local owner of the store and two employees there who allegedly mocked her injuries, CBS Boston reports.
Angela Barbosa filed the lawsuit in Plymouth Superior Court earlier this month.
She says she was in the passenger's seat of her sister's car in June of 2020 when they pulled up to the Dunkin' drive-thru at night and ordered three hot coffees.
She claims an employee handed her sister coffee cups that weren't placed firmly in the tray, and that the hot drinks weren't properly capped. They came loose and tipped over onto Barbosa, burning her legs and buttocks, according to the suit.
"Screaming in pain, the Plaintiff was forced to rip off her leggings in the parking lot, exposing herself in full view of the Dunkin' Donuts employees," the lawsuit states. "Seeing this, the employees were pointing, laughing, and mocking the plaintiff."
The spill resulted in serious burns and nerve damage, the lawsuit states, as well as permanent scars.
Barbosa is suing for negligence and emotional distress.
"The defendants' actions were extreme and outrageous, beyond all possible bounds of decency and utterly intolerable in a civilized community," the lawsuit says.
The Dunkin' location involved is owned by Pembroke, Massachusetts-based Cadete Enterprises, according to the lawsuit. CBS Boston reached out to them for comment.
The Cadete website says its brands include Dunkin', Anytime Fitness and Meineke Car Care Centers. The site says Cadete is "committed to providing the highest quality in products and services to our guests throughout Massachusetts while maintaining the highest levels of standards."