Families spar over coffee cup prize

MONTREAL, March 9 (UPI) -- The parents of two Quebec schoolgirls are in a highly publicized battle over winning an SUV from a coffee chain's instant-win cardboard cup.

The Tim Hortons national coffee chain runs an annual "Roll Up the Rim to Win" promotion, where prizes ranging from free coffee to SUV's are printed inside the lip of the cup.

The 10-year-old girl identified only as Marilou found a cup in the trash at her school outside Montreal, but was unable to get the rim unrolled. She asked a 12-year-old girl to help her, and the pair discovered the prize of a $28,700 Toyota RAV4 SUV, CTV News reported Thursday.

However, both parents have taken to the radio and are making statements in the Montreal Gazette, with Marilou's unidentified father saying "finders keepers," and the other parents demanding half of the prize.

Tim Hortons said in a statement the promotion "is meant to be a thank you to our loyal customers. ... We sincerely hope that the families in this case in Quebec will be able to come to a resolution."

The winning cup has not yet been turned in to claim the SUV.