McDonald's and Wendy's sued for burger ads that mislead on size

A New York man has a beef to pick with McDonald's and Wendy's: misleading adverts he says make their burgers look much bigger than they actually are.

In a proposed class-action lawsuit, he accuses the fast food giants of unfair and deceptive trade practices.

He is seeking $50m (£40.3m) in damages for himself and other similarly duped customers.

The chains did not comment immediately on the suit, which compiles many complaints from social media.

Rival Burger King was hit with a similar lawsuit in Florida in March, by the same law firms representing New Yorker Justin Chimienti.

While Burger King has yet to respond in court, an amended complaint shows that more unhappy customers have signed onto the suit.

The companies' adverts are "unfair and financially damaging consumers as they are receiving food that is much lower in value than what is being promised", the complaints say.

The "actions are especially concerning now that inflation, food, and meat prices are very high and many consumers, especially lower income consumers, are struggling financially," they add.

The lawsuit against McDonald's and Wendy's says the burgers in the marketing are at least 15% larger than they are in real life. It includes some of the reactions on social media calling out the firms for the discrepancy.

"It's looking a little sad... not like the picture," one YouTube reviewer, cited in the lawsuit, said of Wendy's Bourban Bacon Cheeseburger.

"It's going to be a small burger folks. I am just telling you straight up what to expect so you won't be disappointed like me," said another.