Is paying $2 extra for non-dairy milk discrimination? That’s the question at the heart of a new lawsuit, which sees 10 plaintiffs suing restaurant chain Dunkin’ for alleged disability discrimination against people with milk allergies or lactose intolerance.
On TikTok, a content creator who goes by Lawyer Angela (@thelawyerangela) broke down the recently filed case in a video that has now amassed 356,900 views.
“Dunkin’ Donuts is being sued in a nationwide class action for those extra charges they’ve tacked on in the last four years for those of you who’ve ordered coffee and tea-based drinks and swapped out cow’s milk for non-dairy alternatives [like] soy milk, almond milk, coconut milk, [and] oat milk,” she said.
“See, these swaps are often made by people who have an intolerance to dairy or [a] milk allergy which, the lawsuit alleges, qualifies as a disability under the American Disabilities Act,” she continued. “The Act requires reasonable modifications for people with disabilities, and a surcharge may not be imposed to cover those costs.”
@thelawyerangela Send to ur fave Dunkin’ Donuts fan ☕️🍩 #dunkindonuts #dunkin #dunkins #classaction #classactionlawsuit #lawsuit #nondairy #vegan #lactoseintolerant #lactosefree #soymilk #almondmilk #oatmilk #coconutmilk #coffee ♬ original sound – 💥 LAWYER Angela 💥
The problem, she added, is that Dunkin does add a surcharge for these replacements. “The lawsuit says that Dunkin’ currently charges $0.50 to $2.15 for this swap—up to 40% of the drink’s cost,” she said.
“Dunkin does make modifications free of charge for other health issues like making their drinks caffeine-free for people with hypertension, swapping in sugar-free sweeteners for people with diabetes, and the change to skim milk for no extra charge,” she continued.
In the comments section, countless TikTok viewers claimed that this purported discrimination is a lot more widespread than some realize. “EVERYWHERE charges more for it,” one commenter notes. “Will this lawsuit give way for other companies to be sued for it as well?”
“Starbucks charges extra for non dairy milk too,” another adds. “I’m tired of paying extra so I’ll be paying close attention to this.”
“What about the surcharges?” a third asked. “I am charged because I can’t eat gluten, and when I order gluten-free bread and they charge me two dollars more. What?”
Whatever happens, this case will almost certainly change the way the service industry responds to food intolerances, and hopefully, this will be for the better.
The Daily Dot reached out to Angela and Dunkin’ via email for more information.
