Food poisoning can occur when meals or snacks are contaminated with bacteria, viruses and other harmful substances. It can lead to very uncomfortable symptoms that, in rarer cases, can lead to life-threatening conditions. While most meals served in restaurants are safe to eat, unfortunately, some can be contaminated and result in food poisoning.
In some cases, you may be entitled to claim compensation from a restaurant for food poisoning. Of course, that will only be possible if you can prove that the restaurant was the source of your illness. That means you may need to review what you’ve eaten in the past few days so that you can rule out other parties before you begin a claim.
Therefore, this guide explains how to prove food poisoning from a restaurant. Importantly, if you believe you have grounds to start a restaurant food poisoning claim, please feel free to call 0800 6524 881 to discuss your options.
What Are The Common Symptoms Of Food Poisoning?
According to the NHS, some of the most common symptoms of food poisoning include:
- Nausea (feeling sick) and vomiting (being sick).
- Stomach cramps.
- Diarrhoea.
- Fever (a temperature above 38C).
- Tiredness, aches, chills and feeling generally unwell.
Other symptoms can include sweating, thirst and muscle aches. In severe cases, food poisoning can result in blood in vomit, loss of consciousness and shock.
Generally, food poisoning symptoms will start within a few hours or days of consuming contaminated food, although in rarer cases it can take a few weeks.
Could The Symptoms Point To Something Else?
Importantly, as the symptoms listed above can be caused by other illnesses, you may wonder whether you’re suffering from food poisoning or something else altogether. Conditions that could cause symptoms similar to food poisoning can include stomach viruses, allergic reactions to food and even appendicitis.
Some indicators that your illness is caused by food poisoning rather than a stomach bug can include:
- Symptoms that start quickly after eating.
- Symptoms that are more severe than with stomach bugs; but
- Last for less time than the symptoms of a stomach bug.
The NHS advises that if you are suffering from food poisoning, you should stay away from work or school for two days after your last episode of diarrhoea or vomiting.
How To Confirm It’s Food Poisoning From A Restaurant
If you are unsure whether you have food poisoning from a restaurant or another condition entirely, you should seek medical attention from your GP or NHS 111. This is an important step in ruling out other, potentially more serious conditions.
To try and confirm or rule out food poisoning from a restaurant, doctors can:
- Request stool samples so that they can identify what’s made you ill (viruses, toxins, bacteria or parasites).
- Perform blood tests to try and rule out other conditions and the cause of your symptoms.
During your consultation, your doctor will ask questions to try and determine the cause of your illness. Therefore, you should be prepared to tell them about the food you’ve eaten in the past few days, when your suffering began and if anybody else in your family or household is also ill.
You may also need to tell them about which restaurants you’ve eaten in because the GP may be aware of others in the area who have also been ill recently after eating at the same venue.
Reporting Food Poisoning To The Relevant Authorities
If you suspect that you have been made ill because of food poisoning at a restaurant, the Food Standard Agency (FSA) says that you should report your suspicions to your local authority’s food safety team.
It’s important to report suspected food poisoning, dirty premises, poor hygiene standards and other problems in restaurants so that the local authority can conduct an investigation. This can lead to the restaurant being told to make changes to improve hygiene and any report could help you if you decide to claim compensation for food poisoning.
You’ll usually find contact details for the food safety team on your local authority’s website. When you get in touch, you should explain why you’ve contacted them and provide details of the food you ate at the restaurant and the date you ate there. Also, you could tell them about your symptoms and whether food poisoning has been confirmed by your GP.
Suing A Restaurant For Food Poisoning
If you decide to sue a restaurant for food poisoning, you will need to provide evidence to prove the cause of your symptoms.
Some of the ways you can do so include:
- Medical records. A diagnosis of food poisoning from a doctor, including test results and reports linking your symptoms to food poisoning.
- Retaining any receipts for the meal you ate at the restaurant. This would make it very hard for the restaurant to deny that they are liable for your suffering if contaminated food can be proven.
- If possible, a sample of the food you consumed at the restaurant to test for bacteria or contamination.
- Collecting witness statements. For example, if you know of anybody else who has also suffered similar symptoms, ask them for a statement confirming that they ate at the same restaurant, the meal they ate and any symptoms they’ve suffered.
- Health and Safety reports. Any reports of food hygiene violations at the restaurant from authorities like the Food Standards Agency (FSA).
- Keeping a food diary. This should include information about any meals eaten in the past few days and the names of any restaurants you’ve eaten at.
In an ideal world, you would take photographs of any food you’ve consumed and collect samples if you believe that it has caused you to become ill. Of course, this is not always possible because symptoms don’t always appear right away.
However, if anybody in your party took photographs in the restaurant, they could be used as evidence to prove that a) you ate the meal you said and b) the appearance of the food.
If you do have the opportunity to collect a food sample, you should store it in an airtight container to stop it from becoming contaminated any further and then store it in a fridge or freezer to preserve it.
Should I Complain To The Restaurant?
If you’ve suffered food poisoning from a restaurant meal, you might think that it’s a good idea to make a complaint to them directly.
If you do, there is a chance you’ll be offered a swift resolution. For example, the restaurant’s owners may apologise and give you a full refund for your meal. They might even offer some form of compensation such as a free meal for you and your party in the future.
However, discussing what happened with the restaurant directly might prejudice any food poisoning compensation claim you decide to make in the future. For example, you could admit that you’re not sure what made you ill and the restaurant could use this against you in any claim you decide to make.
Therefore, you should be very careful about what you say if you do discuss the case with the restaurant directly.
FAQs & Common Concerns
In this section, we’ve answered some common questions about proving food poisoning from a restaurant:
What if other people didn’t get sick from the same meal?
You could still be entitled to compensation so long as the food poisoning can be proven to have been linked to food consumed at the restaurant. It is quite feasible that your meal was contaminated while others in your party ate uncontaminated food.
Can I still prove food poisoning if I didn’t go to the doctor right away?
Yes, it may still be possible to seek compensation for food poisoning from a restaurant even if you didn’t seek immediate treatment. We’d suggest seeking legal advice from a personal injury solicitor on our team about your options and what evidence you could use to prove your symptoms.
Is it worth pursuing a claim for mild food poisoning?
Realistically, you could pursue compensation for any suffering caused by food poisoning from a restaurant. However, it might not be cost-effective for a solicitor to represent you if you only suffered very minor symptoms as you may not receive very much compensation. The best way to check if it is worth claiming is to speak to a solicitor on our team to explain how you were affected.
How Do I Start A Claim For Food Poisoning From A Restaurant?
While it might not be immediately obvious how to prove food poisoning from a restaurant, there are ways of doing so as outlined in this guide. If you believe that you should be compensated after being made ill by a restaurant meal, please call 0800 6524 881 to speak with a claims advisor.
We offer a free initial consultation and our solicitors offer a No Win No Fee service for all accepted claims so you’ve nothing to lose by contacting us today.