Most of us have experienced it. We arrive at McDonald's looking for a McFlurry or other ice cream only to be told they are not available because the machine is broken.

But now a former McDonald's worker has claimed there is another reason that the sweet treat is not available on many occasions, According to the worker the machine is often not broken at all and it is down to a different issue.

Fans of the fast food chain have previously posted their disappointment on social media after going to their local restaurant and finding they are unable to get their hands on a McFlurry or milkshake, reports the Mirror. But while we're left believing the reason is because the machines are broken, this might not be the case, according to some restaurant workers.

One person, who tweets under the username @will_doyle, claims the machines might well be running perfectly but staff don't want to clean them. The tweet read: "Btw, I used to work in McDonalds. The ice cream machine was never broke, it just takes 3 hours to clean so we used to say it was broke so we didn't have to serve you lot. Cheers x"

Another ex-worker posted: "As an ex-McDonald's employee, the ice cream machine was always working it just took too long to clean it so we used to tell everyone it was broken hahaha." In response to the tweet, one user asked: "I don't understand why you couldn't say it's being cleaned or maintenance."

Another former worker replied and said: "because people don't understand that you can't use it at all when it's on a cleaning cycle ... they just think you're wiping it down or something, its easier to say it's broken."

McDonald's says their machines go through a cleaning cycle every 24 hours. The fast food giant responded: "Our shake and soft-serve ice cream machines undergo heat treatment cycles every 24 hours - they're disassembled, sanitized and cleaned every 14 days."