Couple Charged Nearly $4,500 By Starbucks For Two Coffees Despite Choosing 'No Tip' Option

By maks in News On 2nd November 2024
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It's no secret that coffee prices have been climbing lately, but getting charged $4,500 for two cups of coffee is taking it to an extreme level.

Although this was clearly a mistake on Starbucks’ part, it didn't make the ordeal any less stressful for the customers who experienced it.

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Jesse and Deedee O'Dell had been loyal customers of Starbucks for 16 years before this incident occurred, starting their day with an iced americano and a cappuccino.

But in February 2023, what was meant to be a normal coffee run turned into a nightmare.

What should have been their usual $10 order ended up costing them an astonishing $4,456.27.

Unbeknownst to them, their order included a gratuity fee of $4,444.44 tacked onto the usual cost.

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Jesse recalled that he had selected the 'No Tip' option on the card reader, which made the situation even more puzzling.

Deedee didn't realize anything was wrong until she was out shopping at the mall with their four kids and her card was unexpectedly declined.

Once they figured out what had happened, Jesse reached out to the Starbucks district manager, who told him that the issue might have been caused by a glitch with the card machine’s network.

Yep, that much for a coffee KOKI/CNN

The couple was informed that two checks had been sent to them to cover the erroneous gratuity amount, but when they received the checks, they bounced, as they explained to CBS News.

Jesse shared that on that day alone, they contacted the customer service line "probably 30 or 40 times" until they finally spoke to a representative who promised to send new checks. At the time of the interview, the new checks had still not arrived.

Jesse and Deedee had been planning a trip to visit Deedee's sister in Thailand, a reunion that had been years in the making.

Unfortunately, they were forced to cancel the trip, which was non-refundable.

The couple were shocked by the bill KOKi/CNN

The couple mentioned that they had been working with the Tulsa Police Department to try to resolve the issue.

They also encouraged other Starbucks patrons to double-check their receipts whenever they make a purchase.

"This is something that has caused huge duress in our own family, and hopefully other people don't have to go through something like this," Jesse said.

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A spokesperson for Starbucks confirmed that the problem faced by Jesse and Deedee had been resolved.

"This was an unfortunate situation that has since been resolved," the spokesperson said.

"The tip was entered by the customer in error."

"While the original refund checks had a typo and therefore did not go through, we issued new ones on January 31, which were received and cashed by the customer on Monday, February 6."