Starbucks Tea and Hot Water Burns: Reported Cases and What to Keep

By Michael Shemtoub, trial attorney, Beverly Law. Updated November 2026.

Beverly Law is not affiliated with Starbucks.

Why tea and hot water burn so quickly

Starbucks describes its stores as selling “handcrafted coffee, tea, and other beverages,” and beverages made up 73% of company-operated store sales in fiscal 2025 (Starbucks 10-K). Starbucks has not published a serving temperature for its tea or hot water in any source we found.

A 2019 review in the Journal of Food Science puts typical tea brewing at 200°F, with the water poured into the cup at 191 to 196°F. Its authors recommend brewing at 195°F and letting the drink cool or be diluted to 130 to 160 degrees Fahrenheit before it is served (Abraham and Diller). Tea also holds its heat: a 2010 study in the journal Burns, using 230 ml ceramic mugs and boiled kettle water, found that black tea and black coffee stayed above 65°C (149°F) after 10 minutes of cooling. The authors reported the potential for a full-thickness burn even after 10 minutes of cooling or after cold milk was added (Burns, 2010).

The federal Consumer Product Safety Commission gives these exposure times for most adults to suffer a third-degree burn from hot water (CPSC Publication 5098):

Every row is well below the 191 to 196°F pour temperature the 2019 review describes for tea, and wet clothing holds the liquid against the skin. In two of the cases below, one plaintiff pulled off his sweatpants in a parking lot and another alleges her leggings stuck to and burned her thighs (Fox Business; MyNewsLA, April 2026).

Reported tea and hot water cases involving Starbucks

Piluyev. Tommy Piluyev and his family were picking up two Honey Citrus Mint Teas at a Roseville drive-thru while he sat in his SUV. According to the suit, the lid lost its seal during the handoff and the cup overturned on the window sill, pouring tea onto his hands, stomach and pelvic area. Fox Business reported burns to nine fingers and his lower abdomen, thighs and groin, and treatment in the UC Davis Medical Center burn unit (Fox Business); KPRC, citing CBS Sacramento, reported an 11-day stay (KPRC). The September 2020 suit named Starbucks and Pactiv Packaging Inc., which it says supplied the cups and lids.

Shabdiz. Sala Lily Shabdiz, then a 21-year-old USC student, alleges the tea she picked up on Feb. 23, 2022 was heated to more than 200 degrees, and her complaint states, “Neither plaintiff nor her friend ordered their beverages extra hot” (MyNewsLA). Her friend’s cup was double-cupped while hers had only a sleeve, and she alleges the cup bent from the heat and the lid came off when she lifted it from her car’s cup holder at home (MyNewsLA, Jan. 2026). The case was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court in November 2023.

Salas-Solano. Deanna Salas-Solano alleged in a suit filed in Denver that her 20-ounce tea had an unsecured lid and no sleeve, was not double-cupped, and that Starbucks had a written policy to double-cup hot tea. She reported second-degree burns and later skin grafts. Starbucks said, “We have video evidence that clearly contradicts the claims made by the plaintiff and believe they are without merit.” Reporters who viewed the video said it appeared to show a sleeve and a secure lid but was not conclusive (FOX6/Tribune Media Wire).

Moltner and Shih. Both plaintiffs lost after taking the lid off themselves. Rachel Moltner, 76, spilled a double-cupped venti tea while removing the lid and needed a skin graft. The 2nd U.S. Circuit upheld dismissal, writing that “double-cupping is a method well known in the industry as a way of preventing a cup of hot tea from burning one’s hand” (Reuters via Insurance Journal). In Shih, the plaintiff removed her lid, leaned forward to sip, her chair slid and she knocked the tea off the table. The California Court of Appeal held the claimed cup defects were “too remotely connected with [the plaintiff’s] injuries to constitute their legal cause,” while noting a missing sleeve could raise other risks, such as burns from touching or dropping the cup (Shih opinion).

Cha and Rodgers. Philina Cha alleged that a cup of hot water she ordered with a coffee in Portland had no lid or one that did not fit, and the water ran down her leg into her boot, leading to skin grafts. Starbucks said it was investigating the allegations (AP via KOMO). In San Diego, Curtis Rodgers alleged the lid on a cup of hot water he was using for instant noodles fell off as he tilted it, causing third-degree burns, and that the water was heated above 135 degrees. In a tentative ruling, Judge Loren G. Freestone denied Starbucks’ motion for summary judgment, noting “Starbucks does not submit any evidence that it did not overheat the water” (tentative ruling).

The Rodgers ruling drew the line between these cases: unlike Shih, Rodgers had not taken the lid off himself and testified it fell off as soon as he tipped the cup, so the judge’s tentative ruling let the case go on.

What to keep after a tea or hot water burn

1. Every layer of the cup. If the drink was double-cupped, keep both cups. If it had a sleeve, keep the sleeve. Keep the lid separately and do not press it back on. Whether a cup was doubled or sleeved was a central fact in Moltner, Shih, Shabdiz and Salas-Solano.
2. The order record. Save the receipt or app order showing the drink, size and any customization. Whether a drink was ordered extra hot came up in the Shabdiz complaint.
3. The clothing, unwashed, in a bag.
4. Photos of the burn the same day and as it changes.
5. A written request to the store to keep its video. Our Starbucks drive-thru and lid page explains how, and the drive-thru burns page covers other chains.

If a child was burned by tea or hot water, read our page on children burned by Starbucks drinks, because the deadlines are different.

Filing deadlines

A burn suit generally must be filed within two years in California (CCP § 335.1) and Texas (CPRC § 16.003), and within three years in Washington (RCW 4.16.080). Texas cases are handled by the firm’s Texas-licensed attorneys, Joyce Ondich and John Efstathiou. Our main Starbucks burn page covers liability rules, and hot beverage temperatures compares chains, including Peet’s.

Talk to a burn injury lawyer

If a Starbucks tea or hot water burned you or someone in your family, keep the cups and lid and call Beverly Law at (310) 552-6959 for a free consultation in English or Spanish. We handle cases in California and Washington. You owe no fees or costs unless we win. More on our burn injury lawyer page.

Common questions

Related pages

Burn Injury Lawyer

Important: This page is general information, not legal or medical advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different; talk to a lawyer about yours. Texas cases are handled by the firm’s Texas-licensed attorneys, Joyce Ondich and John Efstathiou. Last reviewed: November 6, 2026.