Food hygiene complaints

We inspect all food businesses on a regular basis and try to resolve any food hygiene problems that we find. However, sometimes things may go wrong and you may not be happy with the food served by a food business. This page contains information about the hygiene standards that you should expect to find when eating out and what to do if you are not satisfied.

Complaining about a food business

All food businesses must be maintained in a clean condition, although standards have to be much higher in the kitchen than in the eating areas.

If you are not satisfied with the food that you have been served or the premises is unhygienic and feel that there may be a food hygiene problem at the food business you should complain to the manager of the business.

If you are not satisfied with the response from the manager you should contact us to make a complaint about the business.

We will not divulge your details to the business unless you tell us that we can and we will deal with any food hygiene related problems that we find at the business.

If you find an object in food, or have suspicions that the food may be contaminated, you should take the food away with you, keep it refrigerated or frozen and then contact us. If we accept the food, we will investigate the complaint and take any action that is necessary against the food business.

Use our online form to report a complaint

Eating out safely - tips

You should expect to be served food hot that is supposed to be hot and cold that is supposed to be cold. Tepid food indicates that the food may have been left at room temperature for a while letting bacteria multiply.

Check the toilets before eating. If a food business cannot keep the public toilets clean, imagine what the kitchen might be like!

Food handlers are not required to wear gloves although some businesses do use them. Food handlers are however, legally required to wash their hands regularly especially if handling raw meat then ready to eat food. Do not accept ready to eat food that has been handled after raw food unless the food handler has washed his/her hands. Gloves are not a substitute for regular hand washing!

If you are ill after eating out remember that most cases of food poisoning take on average 12 hours before symptoms will be shown. It is almost always the case that the last thing that you eat did not cause you to be ill. So if you have sickness and diarrhoea it may not have been the takeaway, it may have been something you ate for breakfast!

Last updated: 21/08/2023 13:35