Court awards 8-year-old girl nearly $1 million after she was burned by chicken nuggets

An eight-year-old girl has been awarded $800,000 after she suffered severe burns from a McDonald's chicken nugget.

Philana Holmes visited a McDonald's drive-thru in Tamarac, Florida and ordered a Chicken McNuggets Happy Meal which she passed over to her daughter, Olivia, sat in the backseat.

However, suddenly, Holmes heard her then-four-year-old screaming in agony and turned round to see her daughter's leg had been badly burned, the family's lawsuit claimed.

Alamy

The mom pulled into a parking lot and discovered one of Olivia's McNuggets from her Happy Meal had allegedly fallen and wedged itself in between her leg and her car seat, scalding her thigh.

Holmes and Olivia's father, Humberto Carabello Estevez, decided to sue McDonald's Corporation and the franchisee Upchurch Foods Incorporated over not warning the mum the food was 'unreasonably and dangerously hot' - claiming the nugget's temperature measured a whopping 200 degrees.

However, lawyers for the fast food chain argued the nuggets would've been no more than 160 degrees.

Getty Images/ Carlos Osorio/ Toronto Star

The lawsuit also claimed that Olivia suffered from second-degree burns as a result of the fallen nugget, her thigh left 'disfigured and scarred'.

The mom also took photographs of the injury at the time it occurred, as well as sound recordings of Olivia's screams - both of which were displayed in court.

The family initially asked for $15 million, with their lawyers arguing Olivia deserved the sum for the trauma the incident has caused her in the past and will continue to cause her in the future.

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McDonald's responded by offering $156,000 and argued that Holmes had the issue with the scar when Olivia had reportedly said she'd still return to McDonald's and order nuggets despite the incident.

The jury found McDonalds liable for failing to warn or disclose advice on how to handle its hot nuggets and Upchurch Foods Inc liable for failure to warn customers of the risks associated with hot food as well as being liable for negligence.

However, McDonalds was not found to be responsible for causing Olivia's burn.

Olivia and her parents ultimately received a total payout of $800,000 for 'pain and suffering, disfigurement, mental anguish, inconvenience, and loss of capacity for enjoyment of life,' VT reports.

Reflecting on the jury's decision, Olivia's family's attorney read out the statement: "This momentous decision brings meaningful closure to an arduous and protracted legal process.

"Having previously established the defendants, Upchurch Foods Inc and McDonald's USA LLC, as liable for their wrongful actions, this verdict reaffirms that they must now face the consequences and provide full justice.

"Despite years of denying any fault and, during this trial, attempting to undermine the extent of Olivia's suffering in the eyes of the community, their efforts have been superseded by the jury's determination."

UNILAD has contacted Upchurch Foods and McDonald's for comment.