Food Allergies and the Legal Duties of Restaurants and Takeaways

Food allergies can cause serious and potentially fatal reactions. Restaurants, cafés, takeaways, pubs, caterers, care homes and other food businesses must provide customers with accurate information where food contains any of the 14 allergens regulated by food law.

The rules apply to food sold in person, online or by telephone. Businesses must understand the ingredients used in their dishes, manage changes to recipes and ensure that staff do not guess when answering questions about allergens.

What Are the 14 Regulated Allergens?

Businesses must provide information where food contains any of the following allergens as an ingredient:

• Celery
• Cereals containing gluten, including wheat, rye, barley and oats
• Crustaceans, such as prawns, crabs and lobster
• Eggs
• Fish
• Lupin
• Milk
• Molluscs, such as mussels, oysters and squid
• Mustard
• Peanuts
• Sesame
• Soya
• Sulphur dioxide and sulphites above the prescribed level
• Tree nuts, including almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, cashews, pecans, Brazil nuts, pistachios and macadamia nuts

Other foods can also cause allergic reactions, but the specific mandatory information requirements apply to these 14 regulated allergens.

Restaurants, Cafés and Takeaways

For food that is not prepacked, a business must make allergen information available to the customer.

The information may be provided:

• On the menu
• On a notice or chalkboard
• In an allergen chart or information folder
• Through an ordering website or application
• Verbally by a trained member of staff

If allergen information is provided verbally, there should be a clear notice telling customers that they can ask a member of staff for the information.

The information must be accurate, accessible and based on reliable ingredient and recipe records. Staff should never assume that a dish is safe or tell a customer that it is allergen-free without checking.

Telephone and Online Orders

Where food is ordered online or by telephone, allergen information must be available before the purchase is completed and again when the food is delivered.

A takeaway should have a reliable system linking each order to the customer's allergy requirements. Information given through an ordering platform must remain accurate when recipes or suppliers change.

A general statement asking customers to telephone the restaurant may not be sufficient unless accurate information is genuinely available before the order is placed.

What Is Natasha's Law?

Natasha's Law is the commonly used name for the rules applying to food prepacked for direct sale, often shortened to PPDS.

PPDS food is packaged at the same premises from which it is offered or sold and is placed into its packaging before the customer selects or orders it.

Examples may include:

• Sandwiches prepared and packaged by a café before being placed on display
• Salads boxed by a restaurant and sold from its counter
• Cakes wrapped at a bakery before being selected by the customer
• Food prepared and packaged by a mobile food business for sale from the same stall

PPDS food must carry a label containing the name of the food and a full ingredients list. Any of the 14 regulated allergens must be emphasised within that list, commonly by using bold type, capital letters or another clearly contrasting format.

Prepacked Food

Food prepacked by one business and supplied to another retailer must normally carry a full label containing the required food information.

Regulated allergens must be clearly emphasised in the ingredients list. Where there is no ingredients list, specific allergen wording may be required.

Manufacturers, suppliers and retailers should ensure that labels remain accurate when ingredients, production methods or suppliers change.

Can a Business Say It Cannot Guarantee Allergen-Free Food?

A business may explain that it handles allergens and cannot guarantee that accidental cross-contact will never occur. However, a general disclaimer does not remove the duty to provide accurate information about the ingredients deliberately used in a dish.

A statement such as"all food may contain allergens" should not be used as a substitute for proper ingredient records, staff training and risk assessment.

Where a business cannot safely meet a customer's request, it should say so clearly rather than provide reassurance that cannot be supported.

Cross-Contamination and Precautionary Warnings

Cross-contamination, sometimes called cross-contact, can occur where a food unintentionally comes into contact with an allergen during storage, preparation, cooking or serving.

Examples include:

• Using the same utensils or chopping boards
• Cooking different foods in the same oil
• Storing ingredients in open or incorrectly labelled containers
• Using equipment that has not been adequately cleaned
• Allowing spills, powders or crumbs to contaminate other food

Warnings such as "may contain" should be based on a genuine risk assessment. They should not be applied automatically to every product as a replacement for proper allergen controls.

Staff Training

Businesses should ensure that staff understand:

• The 14 regulated allergens
• Where reliable ingredient information is kept
• How to record allergy requests
• Why recipes and substitutions must be checked
• How cross-contamination can occur
• When to refer a question to a manager or chef
• What to do if a customer has an allergic reaction

Temporary, agency and delivery staff should also receive appropriate instructions. A customer should not receive different answers depending on which employee is asked.

Changes to Ingredients and Suppliers

Recipes can change when an ingredient becomes unavailable, a supplier substitutes a product or a chef uses a different sauce, garnish or cooking method.

Businesses should check every replacement product rather than assuming it has the same ingredients as the product normally used.

Menus, allergen charts, labels and ordering systems should be updated promptly. Staff should also be informed before the changed food is served.

Food Allergies and Food Intolerances

A food allergy involves the immune system and can cause symptoms ranging from itching and swelling to a life-threatening anaphylactic reaction.

A food intolerance does not usually involve the immune system but can still cause serious discomfort and illness. Examples include some forms of lactose intolerance.

Coeliac disease is an autoimmune condition triggered by gluten and is not simply a food preference or ordinary intolerance.

Businesses should take all customer requests seriously and should not dismiss an allergy because the customer has previously eaten a similar product without an obvious reaction.

What Should a Customer Do?

A customer with an allergy should inform the business clearly before ordering and identify the food or ingredients that must be avoided.

They should ask:

• Whether the allergen is used as an ingredient
• Whether recipes or suppliers have recently changed
• How the food is prepared and cooked
• Whether shared equipment, utensils or cooking oil are used
• Whether the person answering has checked the current allergen information

A customer should not rely solely on how a dish is described. Sauces, dressings, marinades, garnishes and cooking ingredients can contain allergens that are not obvious from the menu name.

What Should Happen During an Allergic Reaction?

Symptoms of a serious allergic reaction can include difficulty breathing, swelling of the mouth or throat, wheezing, collapse, confusion or loss of consciousness.

A suspected anaphylactic reaction is a medical emergency. Someone should call 999 immediately and explain that anaphylaxis is suspected.

Where the person has an adrenaline auto-injector, it should be used in accordance with their emergency plan and the applicable medical instructions. A second device may be needed if symptoms do not improve, but emergency medical assistance should always be requested.

Reporting an Allergen Incident

A customer who believes they were given incorrect allergen information should retain any available evidence, including:

• The food and its packaging
• A receipt or order confirmation
• Photographs of the product, menu or label
• Messages exchanged with the business
• Medical records
• Details of witnesses

The incident can be reported to the business and the local authority food-safety or trading-standards service. The police or other enforcement bodies may also investigate serious incidents.

Enforcement and Penalties

Local authorities are generally responsible for enforcing allergen-information requirements.

Where a business fails to provide accurate information, enforcement action may include advice, formal notices, seizure or withdrawal of food and criminal prosecution.

Providing false or misleading information about allergens can have serious consequences, particularly where a customer suffers injury or dies.

Individual employees, managers, directors or the business itself may face investigation depending on who was responsible for the failure and how the business was operated.

Can a Customer Claim Compensation?

A customer who suffers an allergic reaction because a business provided incorrect information or prepared food negligently may be able to bring a personal injury claim.

A claim might involve:

• Medical expenses
• Loss of earnings
• Pain and suffering
• Psychological injury
• Care and assistance
• Other financial losses caused by the reaction

The claimant would normally need to establish that the business owed a duty of care, breached that duty and caused the injury or loss.

The existence of a criminal investigation or prosecution is not essential before a civil claim can be considered.

Responsibilities of Food Businesses

Every food business should know what is contained in the food it provides.

Good allergen management includes maintaining accurate recipes, retaining supplier information, training staff, recording customer requests and reviewing procedures whenever a product or ingredient changes.

Where there is doubt, the business should check before serving the food. Guessing or giving unsupported reassurance can expose a customer to a life-threatening risk.

Obtaining Legal Advice

A person who has suffered an allergic reaction may need advice from a solicitor specialising in personal injury, product liability or food-safety law.

A food business facing an investigation, prosecution or compensation claim should obtain advice from a solicitor experienced in regulatory and criminal law.

Claims and prosecutions can involve strict deadlines, medical evidence, food records and expert analysis, so advice should be obtained promptly.

Important Information

Solicitors.com is not a firm of solicitors. This article is provided for general information only and does not constitute legal, medical or food-safety advice. Food-information rules and guidance may change and can differ across the UK. Their application will depend on the individual circumstances. You should seek advice from a suitably qualified solicitor, healthcare professional or food-safety adviser before taking or refraining from action.