‘McBroken’: Charlotte area customers have low expectations when ordering ice cream at McDonald’s

(FOX 46 CHARLOTTE) – McDonald’s customers in the Charlotte area have low expectations when it comes to ordering a popular item from the franchise’s drive-thru menu.

“I’ll sit in line for about an hour with my kids only to find the ice cream machine is down,” customer Brittany Harrison said.

“How often does happening?” FOX 46’s Taylor Young asked

“Well, it was often until I just stropped coming as often as I was,” Harrison said.

The FTC is reportedly investigating why the McDonald’s ice cream machine is frequently broken.

“It’s definitely something a consumer can file a complaint about if they wanted to because if they feel like there are being deceived or they are not receiving the business that they want that can qualify a complaint,” South Carolina Department of Public Affairs communications director the Bailey Parker

She said the department works with the FTC frequently.

“One of our very similar goals that we have with the FTC is protecting consumers from unfair or deceptive business practices,” Bailey said.

A website called McBroken is dedicated to showing customers which location have broken machines. FOX 46 visited three of them Thursday and were unable to order ice cream products.

FOX 46 reached out to McDonalds Corporate about the reported investigation. 

“Intrinsic to the interest in our soft serve machines is our fans’ love of McDonald’s iconic McFlurry desserts and shakes. Nothing is more important to us than delivering on our high standards for food quality and safety, which is why we work with fully vetted partners that can reliably provide safe solutions at scale. McDonald’s has no reason to believe we are the focus of an FTC investigation,” the franchise said in a statement.

“I feel like being investigated might be a little extra, but at the same time it’s hot, everyone wants some ice cream, and they never have it,” customer Sierra Welch said.

“Have you ever tried to get it and have not been able to?” FOX 46 asked

“Yeah, every time I’ve tried to get it, I have not been able to, so I’ve just stopped trying to get it,” Welch said.

In its statement to FOX 46, McDonalds said, “We know it’s frustrating for customers when they visit McDonald’s and our soft serve machines are down, and we’ve built a dedicated team to help us serve their favorite desserts more consistently.  We’re introducing a variety of new solutions – including new training resources for crew members and regular maintenance ‘check-ups’ to help keep machines running smoothly.”