Couple left raging after being charged more than $4k for coffee

A couple was left aghast after discovering they had been charged nearly $4,500 dollars for two cups of coffee from their local Starbucks.

Jesse and Deedee O'Dell from Oklahoma have been to their local branch of the coffee chain almost daily for the last 16 years, ordering the same two drinks – an iced americano and a cappuccino.

But, this time, they were left shocked after discovering that their order which usually costs them around $10 came to an incredible $4,456.27 without them realising.

The error occurred after a gratuity charge of $4,444.44 was accidentally added to their order, surprising Jesse who remembered pressing the button for the “no tip” option on the card reader.

It wasn’t until a few days later that the mistake was recognised when Deedee attempted to use her card at a shopping mall with her four children and her card declined.

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Starbucks was contacted by Jesse and he was told by the Starbucks district manager that there was some kind of error that occurred on the network that their card machine uses, causing the incorrect gratuity figure to be added.

But, the error was far from a quick fix as the couple were told they would be sent two cheques that would repay the $4,444.44 they were wrongly charged. When the couple went to cash them, however, the cheques bounced and were unable to be cashed, according to CNN.

After contacting the Starbucks customer service line “probably 30 or 40 times that day”, they were told by a representative that new cheques would be sent.

A spokesperson for Starbucks told indy100 the original cheques contained a typo but that as of 31 January the issue has been resolved and the couple has been refunded.

The couple claims the ordeal meant they were forced to cancel a non-refundable trip to Deedee’s native Thailand where they had planned to visit her sister who they have not seen for years.

Jesse told CNN: “We’re hoping that when the cheques come in, everything clears and everything’s fine but this is something that has caused huge duress in our own family you know and hopefully other people don’t have to go through something like this.”

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