The Bizarre Reason Someone In Russia Is Suing McDonald's
Is it buyer's remorse or an amazing marketing campaign? The reason this Russian customer is suing McDonald's will have you asking questions. Ksenia Ovchinnikova from the Russian city of Omsk wrote in her statement as part of a lawsuit against the global fast-food giant, "In the actions of McDonald's, I see a violation of the consumer protection law. I ask the court to investigate and, if a violation has taken place, to oblige McDonald's LLC to compensate me for moral damage in the amount of one thousand rubles," as shared in Zamoskvoretsky press service (via Oddity Central).
To understand more about the motivation for this lawsuit, the time period matters. The Russian Orthodox Church takes Lent very seriously (via Russia Beyond). For 48 days each spring, nearly 3 million Russians avoid all meat, dairy, seafood, and other animal products like eggs. As archpriest Maxim Kozlov writes on the website Orthodox Church World (via Russia Beyond), "We are not merely giving up meat, dairy and fish products during Lent, but rather, by training our will power on small things we show devotion to God and readiness for ordeals that may befall us in the future."
It's this temptation that has Ovchinnikova feeling litigious. Read on for more.
The cheeseburger that was so tempting, it overpowered religion
Ksenia Ovchinnikova says that as of April 2019, they had been successfully fasting for Lent every year for 16 years until one fateful day, they describe. "By this point, I had already been fasting for a month, but when I saw an advertising banner, I could not help myself, I visited McDonald's and bought a cheeseburger," she said in a court statement (via NY Post). Yes, the person is suing McDonald's for a cheeseburger. One they voluntarily purchased. Ovchinnikova is asking for 1000 rubles, or about $14 as repayment for the moral damage they have incurred.
The damage is reportedly caused by a banner McDonald's had displaying on a town street at the time, picturing chicken McNuggets and a cheeseburger — an ad reportedly so tempting it could break a 16-year streak of religious devotion. If this banner is truly so enticing we'd sincerely like to congratulate the marketing and design teams involved. Adding to the bizarre nature of the lawsuit is the small dollar amount, which seems like it would pale in comparison to any court or litigation costs.
This case of buyer's remorse definitely seems strange to us, but standing up for one's principles doesn't always make monetary sense. There is currently no reported court hearing date on this case.