Coffee is getting expensive nowadays, there’s no doubt about that – but $4,500 for two cups of a caffeine boost is next level.
Of course, this was a mistake made on the side of Starbucks, but that didn’t make it any less stressful for the customers involved.
Jesse and Deedee O’Dell had become long-term customers of the coffee giant for 16 year prior to the incident, starting their day off with an iced americano and a cappuccino.
But in 2023, while they were at Starbucks ordering their usual tipple, the couple’s order went horribly wrong.
Typically, the coffee order sets Jesse and Deedee back around $10, but a February 2023 order cost them a whopping $4,456.27.
Without realizing, the couple had been charged a gratuity fee of $4,444.44 on top of their regular coffee order.
What makes matters even more confusing is the fact Jesse said he remembered selecting the ‘No Tip’ option on the card machine.
It wasn’t until days later that Deedee noticed the mix-up when she was at the mall with her four kids and her card declined.
Yep, that much for a coffee (KOKI/CNN)
After getting to the bottom of the missing funds, Jesse got in touch with the Starbucks district manager, and was told there must have been an error with the network that the card machine uses.
The couple was told they had been sent two checks that would add up to the full gratuity amount, but when they arrived, the checks bounced, they told CBS reports.
That day, Jesse said they’d contacted the customer service helpline ‘probably 30 or 40 times that day’ until a representative assured them that they’d be sent new checks – though, at the time of the interview, they’d had yet to arrive.
Jesse, Deedee, and their children had been planning a trip to Deedee’s home country of Thailand to visit her sister, who she hadn’t seen for years.
But the couple have since had to cancel the non-refundable trip.
The couple were shocked by the bill (KOKi/CNN)
They said that they had been subsequently working with the Tulsa Police Department to try and get the issue resolved.
They also urged other Starbucks customers to check the receipt every time they order a coffee.
“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,” said Jesse.
A spokesperson for Starbucks told UNILAD that Deedee and Jesse’s problem had been sorted.
“This was an unfortunate situation that has since been resolved,” they stated.
“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.”