Burger King has been sued by at least 100 patrons in the United States for misleading customers through its advertisements. The federal lawsuit, filed in Southern Florida, accuses the fast-food giant of inflating the size of its burgers in images. The 26-page class-action complaint further claimed that Burger King adopted the practice in 2017, adding that it “more fairly” advertised its food products before that.
The lawsuit further said that the Whopper - Burger King's iconic product - is about 35 per cent smaller than what is shown in the images.
It also features side-by-side comparisons of menu items and their ad images, which appear bigger.
"Burger King advertises its burgers as large burgers compared to competitors and containing oversized meat patties and ingredients that overflow over the bun to make it appear that the burgers are approximately 35% larger in size, and containing more than double the meat than the actual burger," according to the complaint, as reported by Fox Business.
The lawyers representing the patrons told Fox Business that they want Burger King and other fast-food chains to advertise their menu items in a way that's closer to reality.
It cited a Twitter post from a Lynnwood-based user, which showed side-by-side photos of a Whopper Melt advertisement and the real photo of the burger.
“Am I a joke to you, @BurgerKing?” the user named Colin J McMahon wrote in the post, dated March 14, pointing to the jarring comparison shots.
The other food items mentioned in the complaint that “mislead” the customers are Croisann'Wich and Double Sausage sandwich.
Burger King began operations as a small burger chain in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1953. It is owned by Restaurant Brands International.
So far, the company has not reacted to the development. In a statement to Fox Business, company spokesperson said the corporation "does not comment on pending or potential litigations."
