Expert Public Health Lawyers At Irwin Mitchell Instructed to Investigate Cause Of Illness

Expert public health lawyers at Irwin Mitchell have been instructed to investigate the cause of an illness outbreak after more than 100 people reportedly suffered with severe gastric illness after eating at the Exeter Arms pub, in Middlemoor, Exeter, which is a Toby Carvery restaurant.

After illness was reported to the management, a deep clean was conducted at the restaurant, and the pub was visited by Environmental Health officials on April 2^nd and continued to trade over the Easter weekend after closing for one day.

Further people are thought to have fallen ill over this period and Environmental Health officials visited the pub again on Tuesday, April 7^th, at which point it was closed, together with the adjoining hotel, for a specialist clean.

So far dozens of people who visited the pub in recent weeks have now instructed specialist public health lawyers at Irwin Mitchell and this number continues to rise.

The law firm has successfully represented many thousands of victims of illness in the UK, most notably at the Newcastle Spice Festival in 2013 and following a Salmonella outbreak related to the Real China restaurant, Eastleigh, in 2014.

Amandeep Dhillon, a Partner and expert public health lawyer at Irwin Mitchell leading the case, said: 

Expert Opinion

“Reports of an illness outbreak of this kind in the UK are extremely concerning and it is vital an investigation is conducted to determine the cause of the outbreak and if more could have been done to prevent its spread to other people visiting the Exeter Arms following the initial closure.

“It is possible that there could be important lessons to be learnt here, which might reduce the likelihood of similar problems occurring in the future. We are very keen to hear from anyone else affected by the outbreak who may be able to help us with our enquiries.” Amandeep Dhillon - Partner

Maggie Scott suffered symptoms after visiting the Exeter arms on March 30th and continues to feel nauseous and lethargic following the illness.

She said: “This is the last thing you expect when you visit a restaurant in the UK. It took approximately five days for me to recover from most of the symptoms and it really knocked me for six as I’m diabetic and also recovering from gall bladder surgery.

“I hope that the investigation into the cause of the illness will ensure other people do not have to go through what I have recently and also will mean that I can put it all behind me and focus on my recovery, as I still don’t feel 100 per cent.”