Burger King has fixed a 'temporary technical error' in its app after a customer publicly exposed a loophole that allowed some people to add extra meals to a two-for-£12 deal at no extra cost. The customer, Paul Martin, has since faced a wave of online criticism, with social media users branding him a 'snitch' and accusing him of ruining the deal for everyone.
The issue dates back to April, when Burger King brought back its 'two meals for £12' combo, which includes two original Whoppers, two regular portions of fries and two soft drinks. While the offer had run on and off for years without apparent incident, some customers had discovered they could add an unlimited number of extra meals to the deal at no additional cost.
Customer Reports Glitch
On October 30, Paul Martin tagged Burger King on X, claiming he had made several attempts to contact the brand. 'Can someone reach out to me,' he wrote. 'I have found a serious bug in your apps and kiosks. I've tried contacting via the usual channels, but being ignored.'
After receiving no response for a few days, he posted again: 'I've tried to report this to @BurgerKingUK but they aren't interested. So here it is, you can do this with any offer, any location, both delivery and collection. I got 18 whoppers, 18 fries and 18 drinks for £26. Let's see how long it takes them to fix now.'
Burger King Responds
Burger King then got in touch, with a spokesperson thanking Paul for sharing and saying it had been raised for investigation. In a statement, the chain confirmed it was 'aware of a temporary technical error in [its] app,' but this had 'now been resolved.'
A Burger King spokesperson told Metro that 'no orders were actually given away or processed at the incorrect price', though online claims from customers suggest otherwise, with some reportedly having received freebies for years.
Public Backlash
Following the fix, Paul's second ever post on X, which received 1.6 million views, drew hundreds of negative comments. Many accused him of being a 'shambolic snitch' and 'ruining it for everyone'. One user, @xerobull, criticised Paul for not considering the cost of living and instead prioritising a 'million dollar corporation'. Another suggested he should have 'fed all of the homeless people in his city', while a third claimed he 'could have been Robin Hood.'
'You had a chance to solve world hunger, Paul,' said @smurfingsi59083, while @not_airspeed added: '16 years I have been using this hack now they will patch it!'
The Burger King controversy comes just a few weeks after Asda paused an online offer after shoppers found a loophole. On October 22, the retailer launched a deal for new customers, offering £30 off a shop if they spent £60 or more. It was meant only for those placing their first online order, but a 'significant' number of people found a way to bypass the rule. In one store, there were over 1,000 orders, which an employee branded 'hell on earth'. Asda paused the offer, which had been set to run until December 31, and thanked customers for their patience while it looked into the matter.
