Dealing with restaurant problems How to complain
Summary
A quick summary of your rights:
Report poor restaurant hygiene to the local environmental health dept
Statements and descriptions in menus, such as 'home-made', must be accurate
Any extra charges, such as a service charge or cover charge, must be made clear before you go inside a restaurant
If food isn't satisfactory
Step one
If you are served food that does not match its description on the menu, or has not been prepared with 'reasonable care or skill', then stop eating it straight away.
Step two
Complain immediately and ask for either a new portion (if the first one was burnt or cold, for example), or another dish. If you have lost faith in the restaurant completely you might want to leave and eat elsewhere. You should not have to pay for the problem dish, although you should pay for parts of the meal that were ok. Speak to the manager if the waiter or waitress can't help.
Step three
If the restaurant won't accept your complaint, you can do either of the following:
- pay for some of the bill, deducting what you think is a fair and reasonable amount for the disputed dish. If you leave your name and contact details with the restaurant, and show proof of identity, the police can't intervene as you are not committing a crime. It will be up to the restaurant to pursue you for the amount it says you owe.
- pay the full bill but say that you are paying 'under protest', writing this on the bill, and leaving your name and contact details with the restaurant. By paying under protest you reserve your right to claim compensation later.
Step four
If you paid under protest, write to the restaurant manager as soon as possible after your visit asking for a refund of the money that you are disputing. Set a reasonable time frame for a response (say, two weeks).
Step five
If you are not happy with the restaurant's response you could consider taking action against the restaurant in the small claims track of the County Court. There is a ''Practice Direction'' on ''Pre-action conduct'' which sets out the steps you should go through before starting court action - see our guide to taking a claim to the Small Claims Court. Consider the value of the meal and disruption caused before taking your complaint to a Small Claims Court. If the case is deemed 'frivolous' they could actually make a cost order against you if you lost.
If you think that you got food poisoning from restaurant food
Step one
Visit your doctor immediately so that they confirm whether that is the case, and also arrange for any tests to prove it.
Step two
Speak to other people that you ate with to see if anyone else feels ill – you will probably have a stronger case if people that ate the same food as you have also been ill.
Step three
If you want to claim compensation , you should get advice from a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible. You can contact the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) to find lawyers who specialise in this in your area, or check if you have legal expenses insurance that could potentially provide guidance and access to assistance.
Step four
Report the matter to the Environmental Health Department that covers the area the restaurant is in.
Each council or local authority has an Environmental Health Department that covers their area. It can investigate the incident and can prosecute a company that serves food that is unfit for human consumption.
