Canada-v-McDonalds.org

McDonald's Monopoly : the biggest fraud in history

Contact a consumer association

Try to contact a consumer association in Canada. Many associations have online presence and you can write them an email to report the McDonald's Monopoly fraud. We strongly encourage you to provide them with our email address info@canada-v-mcdonalds.org so that they could contact us if they need any clarifications.

Some consumer associations in Canada :

Canadian consumer organizations

For assistance in finding a Canadian consumer organization that may meet your needs, contact the Office of Consumer Affairs by email at: consumer.information@ic.gc.ca.

UMBRELLA ORGANIZATIONS

National

Canadian Consumer Initiative (CCI)
A coalition of six consumer organizations: the Alberta Council on Aging Services, the Automobile
Protection Association, the Consumers Council of Canada, Option consommateurs, the Public Interest
Advocacy Centre and l’Union des consommateurs.
Tel: (613) 565-9449

Regional

Coalition des associations de consommateurs du Québec (CACQ)
CACQ is an organization which represents a cluster of more than 20 consumer associations in Quebec.
Tel: (514) 362-8623
Website: www.cacq.ca
Email: info@cacq.ca

Union des consommateurs (UC)
UC is an individual organization which represents 10 member organizations (Associations coopératives d’économie familiale - ACEFs) as well as the Association des consommateurs pour la qualité dans la construction (ACQC) in Quebec.
Tel: (514) 521-6820
Website: www.consommateur.qc.ca/union-des-consommateurs/
Email: union@consommateur.qc.ca

INDIVIDUAL ORGANIZATIONS

Automobile Protection Association (APA)
Tel: (514) 272-5555
Website: www.apa.ca
Email: apamontreal@apa.ca

Consumers' Association of Canada
Tel: (613) 238-2533
Website: www.consumer.ca
Email: info@consumer.ca

Consumers' Association of Canada - Alberta
Tel: (780) 426-3270
Webiste: www.albertaconsumers.org
Email: contact@albertaconsumers.org

Consumers' Association of Canada - Manitoba
Tel: (204) 452-2572
Webiste: www.consumermanitoba.ca
Email : info@consumermanitoba.ca

Consumers Council of Canada (CCC)
Tel: (416) 483-2696
Website: www.consumerscouncil.com
Email: info@consumerscouncil.com

Option consommateurs (OC)
Tel: (514) 598-7288
Website: www.option-consommateurs.org
Email: info@option-consommateurs.org

Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC)
Tel: (613) 562-4002
Website: www.piac.ca
Email: piac@piac.ca

Write to us at info@canada-v-mcdonalds.org. We are here to listen to you and to help you.

THE FRAUD EXPLAINED IN DETAILS

Introduction

This is the front page of the website and an introduction to the McDonald's Monopoly fraud.

Return to the front page »

Fraud n°1

The core of the fraud is the fact that McDonald's has rigged the game so that it would be impossible or almost impossible for you to complete a property set. That's the reason why you have a hard time to find the stickers you need to complete a property set.

What the law says

In this section, we explain to you what the relevant laws are for your country. Consumer protection laws being pretty much the same worldwide, we also mention international jurisprudences which would apply to this case in Canada.

Fraud n°2 : the decoy

McDonald's has lied in many countries about the true odds of the instant-win game, the "1 chance out of X". In many countries for example, McDonald's lied by claiming 1 chance out of 4 while the true odds in these countries were 1 chance out 8!

McDonald's executives knew

One of the most shocking aspect of this fraud is that high-level executives knew that the game was illegal. McDonald's CEO Steve Easterbrook omitted to warn investors about the legal issues the company was facing. See what high level executives said to us.

The poker analogy

It's sometimes easier to understand the fraud by analyzing the case from a different angle : for the sake of the argument, let's assume that their fraud was legal; the consequences for the consumers would be devastating. As we demonstrate, it would open the doors to all kind of scams.

The psychology behind the fraud

In this section, we explain how McDonald's is using advanced behavioral techniques to deliberately mislead the consumers. Lots of examples are taken from Daniel Kahneman's world famous book "Thinking Fast and Slow". Kahneman is a Nobel Laureate.

Testimonies

Dozens of victims contacted us once they found our website and realized that they got defrauded. Their testimonies are moving and is a proof that there must millions of other consumers out there who are in needs of assistance. More on this topic tomorrow with a full section dedicated to it.

WHAT YOU CAN DO

Claim a financial compensation

You are legally entitled to a financial compensation if you've played to McDonald's Monopoly. Even though you won a small (consolation) prize, the odds are that you should have won much more had the game not been rigged.

Contact a consumer association

You can contact a consumer assocation. They might be able to help you with this case. This fraud being a nation-wide scam targetting millions of consumers they will most likely be interested in this matter.

Contact the public prosecutor

A dedicated section is going to be published soon. We will talk about the victims' rights and the obligation of the public prosecutor to investigate this fraud due to the scale of it.

TESTIMONIES

The names of the victims have been changed for privacy purposes. If you work for law enforcement and need the victims' original name, please contact us.

It's true that due to this game, I went to McDonald's more than usual. [...] It creates fake hopes. [...] We are going through an economic crisis. Any hope is precious. Especially when we are unemployed.
Victoria B. A victim of McDonald's fraud

As many of my friends, I truly believed in this scam, and I now feel a little bit silly for having fallen in such a big trap, I think it's the first time I went to McDonald's so often in such a short period of time and I now realize, with regrets, that it was all for nothing.
Michael M. A victim of McDonald's fraud

I feel digusted by their methods, the way they target us, people living below the poverty level.
Jenny L. A victim of McDonald's fraud

Germany’s successful monopoly promotion featuring premium products along with our focus on add-on items help drive average check in a highly competitive environment. [...] Despite these headwinds, our brand remains strong in France. Successful monopoly promotions, along with the introduction of new premium products are increasing average check.
McDonald's CEO Steve Easterbrook telling Wall Street's investors Monopoly has a real impact on consumers' behavior. Source : Q4 2015 Earnings Call Transcript