Philippine Supreme Court clears Pepsi of liability

The June 15 decision, made public Tuesday, found “no proof of negligence” by Pepsi and said the company should not be held liable for damages.

“This should be the defining decision. The lower courts are bound by this decision,” said Supreme Court spokesman Ismael Khan, referring to numerous suits against Pepsi still pending in trial courts around the country.

In the 1992 “Number Fever” sales campaign, Pepsi Cola Philippines Inc. offered prizes of up to 1 million pesos (US$18,870; euro14,985) for holders of bottle caps with winning numbers.

When the number “349” was announced on May 25, 1992, tens of thousands of Filipinos claimed the prizes, but Pepsi refused to pay all of them, saying the caps did not contain the proper security codes.

Pepsi said a computer glitch picked the number by mistake.

The Supreme Court cited at least three earlier decisions in which it said the security code was “an indispensable element of a winning crown.”

“The issues surrounding the ‘349’ incident have been laid to rest and must no longer be disturbed in this decision,” the court said.

The company faced more than 1,000 criminal and civil suits, but most have been dismissed, said company lawyer Alexander Poblador.

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