Public Health Lawyers React To Guilty Court Verdict

A hotel in Lichfield has been fined for food hygiene offences after 33 wedding guests became ill after eating contaminated pate.

Expert Public Health lawyers at Irwin Mitchell have said that the fine sends a clear message that the highest standards of hygiene must be met otherwise they run the risk of reputational and financial damage.

In May 2015, guests attending a wedding at the Best Western George Hotel on Bird Street were served chicken liver pate which was found to be contaminated with campylobacter which is a serious bacterial infection which can cause significant and long term health complications.

Many of the guests, including a child, were unwell and one was so ill they had to be hospitalised.

The investigation from Lichfield District Council and Public Health England found that ‘the chicken liver pate had not been safely produced, temperatures had not been monitored and there were no written procedures for its production in place'. There were further issues raised including poor staff record keeping and a lack of hand towels and soap in the staff toilet.

The George Hotel confirmed in Court that the staff responsible for cooking the wedding breakfast no longer worked at the hotel, and that it no longer made its own pate.

Public Health lawyers at Irwin Mitchell have vast experience of representing those who have fallen ill as a result of illness outbreaks in the UK and abroad including 280 people who fell ill at a Toby Carvery restaurant in Exeter and dozens of those who fell ill following the national outbreak of Salmonella in 2014, including some of whom who sadly lost their lives.

 Amandeep Dhillon, a Partner and expert Public Health Lawyer at Irwin Mitchell has said that the Court’s verdict sends a clear message.

If you or a loved one has suffered food poisoning due to poor hygiene standards, our personal injury solicitors could help you claim compensation. Visit our Food Poisoning Compensation Claims page for more information.