McDonald’s: Franchisees set prices
Don’t blame us if cheese-less Quarter Pounders aren’t cheaper
McDonald’s says it has no control over whether its franchisees offer a Quarter Pounder without cheese or whether they charge less for it than for the “with Cheese” version.
The fast-food behemoth fired its latest salvo on Thursday in response to a federal lawsuit by two South Florida customers seeking class action status and damages because, they said, they can’t order a cheese-less Quarter Pounder at the counter without being charged the full menu price for a Quarter Pounder with Cheese.
McDonald’s, which in July warned of “utter chaos” if restaurants are forced to discount prices when patrons ask to omit ingredients, is asking the U.S. District Court in Fort Lauderdale to dismiss the lawsuit filed in early May by Cynthia Kissner of Broward County and Leonard Werner of Miami-Dade County.
Kissner and Werner contend that McDonald’s is obligated to offer the sandwich at a discounted price without cheese for customers who order at the counter. The plain version is offered at a lower price through the company’s mobile app and at the self-service ordering kiosk inside some restaurants, the suit states. But that option
is not listed on the menu boards behind the counter, and patrons who order at the counter are charged full price even when they ask to hold the cheese, Kissner and Werner argued.
The response by McDonald’s was filed by Jennifer OlmedoRodriguez, of the Miami-based law firm Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney P.C.
She wrote that restaurants owned and operated by McDonald’s USA — the company’s domestic arm — offer Quarter Pounders with or without cheese “and have done so even before this lawsuit was instituted.” But that’s irrelevant, she wrote.
“For purposes of standing, the question is not whether consumers can purchase a plain Quarter Pounder for a lower price at some McDonald’s restaurants. They can. The question is whether Plaintiffs have a legal right to purchase a plain Quarter Pounder that one McDonald’s franchisee has chosen not to offer on its menu just because other fran-
chisees have chosen to offer that product. They do not.”
The plaintiffs “have not suffered any injury in fact that is fairly traceable to the conduct of the McDonald’s corporation” and “failed to allege, and simply cannot allege, that McDonald’s corporate violated any legally protected right that they possess,” the company said.
Kissner and Werner have until Sept. 10 to tell the court why their complaint should not be dismissed. Their attorney, Russell B. Adler, said by email on Tuesday that “it’s standard for McDonald’s to deny everything, including control of any of the operations of their franchisees.”
He added, “It’s clear that McDonald’s has substantial control over the activities of their franchisees, including the product offerings which is delivered by McDonald’s through the network system that they have set up. At least now they’ve admitted that they do sell the Quarter Pounder without cheese and it’s available on their mobile app.”
Yet McDonald’s noted that the plaintiffs voluntarily chose to order the listed items at the displayed prices, customize the product to omit “a component part,” pay the listed menu prices and accept the sandwiches without the cheese.
“Plaintiffs have not — and cannot — allege that they could not cancel their purchases and go elsewhere when the displayed prices for the listed menu item were not lowered after they elected to customize the listed menu items to omit the cheese,” the response said.
This is not the first time the Quarter Pounder has fallen under scrutiny.
Months after the product was introduced in 1973, the Nassau County (New York) Office of Consumer Affairs leveled false advertising charges against McDonald’s, saying its inspectors weighed 185 raw Quarter Pounders and found 156 were underweight — some by as much as a quarter ounce.
Those charges were dismissed after McDonald’s agreed to take “all reasonable steps” to ensure its suppliers deliver full-weight patties to its stores.