If you have allergies and choose to eat at Burger King, you would think that it would be relatively easy to get information about allergens so you can choose a dish that’s safe to eat. But what happens if something goes wrong through no fault of your own? Could you make an allergic reaction claim against Burger King? And how much allergy compensation could you receive?
Burger King is a popular restaurant, serving a variety of fast foods. Like any other restaurant, they have a responsibility to provide you with details of allergens in your food. They could do this by creating a Burger King UK allergy menu, listing allergens on their website or training staff to respond to questions about allergens in their food, for example.
Within this guide, we explore the responsibilities that fast food restaurants have towards customers when it comes to allergens in their food. We also take a look at what you could do to avoid an allergic reaction; for example, by checking the menu or asking for ingredients to be omitted from your food.
In addition, we take a look at how solicitors and courts calculate compensation payouts for allergy claims, and how a solicitor could help you get the maximum compensation possible for your claim.
If you have evidence of a valid claim, or you’d benefit from free legal advice surrounding your case, you can reach our team by calling 0161 696 9685.
Select A Section
- A Guide To An Allergic Reaction Claim Against Burger King
- Calculating Compensation For An Allergic Reaction Claim Against Burger King
- Special Damages In Personal Injury Claims
- What Is An Allergic Reaction Claim Against Burger King?
- Do Takeaways Have To Display Allergy Warning Information?
- Negligent Breaches Of Food Hygiene And Safety
- What Allergens Could You Ask To Be Removed?
- What Effect Could A Food Allergy Have On You?
- Could You Claim If You Didn’t Tell The Takeaway You Have A Food Allergy?
- Statistics On Food Allergies In The UK
- Burger King UK Allergy Menu Information
- Make A No Win No Fee Allergic Reaction Claim Against Burger King
- Talk To An Advisor
- Further Information
- FAQs On Food Allergy Claims
A Guide To An Allergic Reaction Claim Against Burger King
Lots of people in the UK have allergies, which can affect various areas of their lives. When it comes to food allergies, allergy sufferers can take steps to avoid a reaction by carefully checking the Burger King allergy menu for the UK restaurant they’re ordering food from. They could also request allergen information from serving staff.
Though staff aren’t required to give details of allergens, they should be able to let you know where you can access allergen information.
In addition, in some cases, those with allergies could even ask for something to be left out of their meal. But what happens if staff agree to a request for an allergen to be left out of a meal, but don’t follow through and provide the allergen regardless? What if the Burger King allergy information on the allergy menu is not accurate? If someone suffers an allergic reaction due to Burger King’s negligence, could they make an allergic reaction claim against Burger King? And what would that involve?
The below sections describe the compensation amounts that could be relevant for allergic reaction claims. In addition to this, we discuss a restaurant’s responsibilities towards their customers that relate to food allergies.
We take a look in detail at the types of incidents that could cause an allergic reaction, and what symptoms of an allergic reaction a person could experience. In addition to all this, we explain how you could begin an allergy claim with the help of a personal injury lawyer.
We hope you find this guide useful. If you’d like to benefit from free legal advice specific to your case, please call us. We’d be glad to advise you.
Calculating Compensation For An Allergic Reaction Claim Against Burger King
Compensation amounts for an allergic reaction claim against Burger King could vary. When calculating compensation settlements, lawyers and courts would not use a personal injury claims calculator. Instead, they would need to assess each case on its unique circumstances and facts.
One piece of important evidence that could influence compensation payouts is the medical report. As part of your personal injury claim, you’d need to have an assessment with an independent medical professional. The purpose of this is to try and prove your injuries were caused or exacerbated by the incident. It also helps to detail how severely you suffered.
The medical professional would take a look at any relevant medical notes, examine you and put together their report. This would detail their professional opinion of your condition and your prognosis. Court and lawyers could use this to come to an appropriate value for your settlement.
Examples Of Compensation Brackets
We understand that you might want to get a rough idea of how much an allergic reaction claim could bring you. Below, we have put together a table containing figures from the Judicial College Guidelines. Solicitors and courts could use this publication to arrive at a value for your claim. However, these figures are only approximations. As we mentioned, compensation would be calculated based on the unique circumstances of your case.
| Type of injury | Guideline Bracket for Compensation | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Illnesses as a result of non-traumatic injuries (e.g, poisoning) | £36,060 to £49,270 | Injured parties could experience symptoms of severe toxicosis. These could include acute, serious pain, diarrhoea and vomiting. They may need to be treated in hospital for some days or weeks. The long term effects may include a significant impact on the injured party’s ability to work as well as their social life. |
| Illnesses as a result of non-traumatic injuries (e.g, poisoning) | £8,950 to £18,020 | Injured parties would suffer symptoms that are short-lived but serious. Their enjoyment of food may be affected for a few years. Symptoms may include vomiting and diarrhea that lasts between 2-4 weeks. |
| Illnesses as a result of non-traumatic injuries (e.g, poisoning) | £3,710 to £8,950 | Injured parties would have experienced symptoms such as fatigue, stomach cramps and bowel function alteration. They may require hospital treatment but would recover within 1-2 years. |
| Illnesses as a result of non-traumatic injuries (e.g, poisoning) | Up to £3,710 | Injured parties would have experienced diarrhea, disabling pain and cramps at levels that vary. Symptoms may have lasted weeks or days. |
If you can’t place your injuries in the compensation table above, or you’d like to know more about how your claim may be valued, get in touch.
Special Damages In Personal Injury Claims
Damages payable in personal injury claims could include compensation for both general and special damages.
General Damages
These compensate victims for their suffering, loss of amenity and pain. We included examples of general damages in the table in the above section.
Special Damages
Special damages are designed to compensate victims of personal injury for their pecuniary (financial) expenses. If you have sustained losses or costs as a direct result of your allergic reaction, you could include them in your claim. They could include any of the costs/losses below, but this is not an exhaustive list. If you’d like free legal advice on what expenses you could include within your claim, you could call our team for advice.
Care Costs
If your allergic reaction led to you needing care at home, you could claim for the costs of this care.
Travel Costs
Have you sustained any travel expenses associated with trips to medical appointments or to meet with your lawyer? If so, you could include these costs as special damages.
Medical Costs
While most NHS care is free at the point of access, you may incur other medical expenses such as prescription fees or counselling, if your experience has caused you mental harm. You could include such medical costs in your claim as special damages.
Loss Of Income
If you’ve taken time off work to recover from your allergic reaction, you may have lost out on some of your income. Loss of earnings claims could take into account bonuses and overtime in some cases.
What Is An Allergic Reaction Claim Against Burger King?
An allergic reaction due to a food allergy occurs when you consume an allergen and your body reacts to what it perceives as a threat. This could cause a number of unpleasant effects, which we explain further in later sections of this guide. To make an allergic reaction claim, you would need to evidence that:
- The restaurant had a duty of care towards you.
- They breached their duty of care.
- You suffered symptoms of an allergic reaction because of their breach of duty.
You would also need to make your claims within the relevant personal injury claims time limit. Usually, this would be three years from the allergic reaction date, but some exceptions could apply.
For example, the limitation may only begin when you became aware that your allergic reaction was caused by their negligence. Or you might be claiming for an incident that happened when you were a child.
If you’d like to benefit from free legal advice concerning how long you’d have to make a claim, please get in touch with our team.
Do Takeaways Have To Display Allergy Warning Information?
Takeaways have a legal responsibility to warn customers of certain allergens contained within their foods. This means they should provide accurate allergen information to consumers for pre-packaged and non-pre-packaged foods and drinks.
The 14 allergy types they are legally required to provide information on include:
- Nuts
- Eggs
- Milk
- Fish
- Cereals (which contain gluten)
- Celery
- Sesame seeds
- Soya
- Lupin
- Crustaceans
- Molluscs
- Sulphites (sulphur dioxide)
- Mustard
- Peanuts
If the Burger King allergy menu doesn’t give accurate information concerning these allergens, and you suffer an allergic reaction due to this, you could have a claim for compensation.
Negligent Breaches Of Food Hygiene And Safety
As well as the Food Safety Act 1990, the Consumer Protection Act 1987 protects consumers from suffering personal injury, damage or loss caused by the foods they purchase.
A breach of food hygiene and safety relating to allergies could include:
- A restaurant not displaying accurate allergen information on their website or menu
- Staff members ignoring requests to omit allergens from their dishes, despite telling you they’ll comply. Restaurants don’t have to take allergens out of their food if you ask them. But if they can’t take the allergen out, they should tell you this and not knowingly provide you with a meal that contains the allergens.
- Cross-contamination of foods with allergens you have specifically asked to be left out of your meal, and the restaurant has agreed to leave out.
If you want to make an allergic reaction claim because of such an incident, or would like free legal advice on whether you could claim, please call us. We will be happy to help you.
What Allergens Could You Ask To Be Removed?
We mentioned in the above section that you could ask servers to remove an allergen from the preparation of your meal. According to Government guidance, the restaurant should try to comply with your request. You could therefore ask for:
- No Cheese
- Without Nuts
- No Tomato
- Without Oats
- No Milk
- Without Eggs
- No Fish
- Without Wheat
If they cannot comply with your request, they should inform you, so you could choose something else that is safe for you to eat.
This guide aims to provide you with information on the justifications behind a valid allergic reaction claim against Burger King. However, if you have unanswered questions, get in touch and our advisors could help.
What Effect Could A Food Allergy Have On You?
A food allergy could affect you in a number of different ways. You could suffer symptoms of an IgE-mediated allergic reaction, which could include:
- Wheezing
- Feeling faint
- Trouble swallowing
- Hay fever-type symptoms
- Vomiting/nausea
- Feeling dizzy
- Swollen throat, mouth body or face
- Hives
A Non-IgE allergic reaction might include symptoms such as:
- Cramping
- Vomiting
- Constipation
- Cracked, dry, red skin
Anaphylaxis
A severe allergic reaction that involves a condition known as Anaphylaxis could be fatal. It is classed as a medical emergency, and symptoms could include:
- Swelling of the throat
- Confusion and/or anxiety
- Collapsing
- A rapid heartbeat
- Trouble breathing
This is why staff should take care to comply with requests to remove allergens and let customers know when they can’t. It’s also why cross-contamination can be dangerous and customers should be informed if there’s a likelihood of this.
Could You Claim If You Didn’t Tell The Takeaway You Have A Food Allergy?
If you haven’t informed a restaurant about your allergies, you may assume you wouldn’t be able to claim. However, as we mentioned, if they aren’t able to provide you with any information about the 14 allergens they are required to inform you of, and you suffer a reaction, they could be in breach of the law. Consequently, you could make a claim for compensation.
What Allergies Should I Tell Staff About?
We would always advise any allergy sufferers to inform restaurants about their allergies or access their allergen information if it’s available online or on a menu, for example. It could be important therefore to let a restaurant know of any:
- Milk allergy
- Sulphur dioxide allergy
- Celery allergy
- Nut allergy
- Lupin allergy
- Egg allergy
- Fruit allergy
- Shellfish allergy
- Seafood allergy
- Soya allergy
- Wheat allergy
- Cereal allergy
- Mustard allergy
- Fish allergy
That way, servers could advise you of foods that are safe for you to eat or they can let you know where you can access the restaurant’s allergy information. However, when you have any allergy, you are somewhat responsible for your own health. So you should inform staff or access the allergen information in another way.
Statistics On Food Allergies In The UK
Food allergies in the UK are not uncommon. According to statistics published by Food.gov.uk, in 2017, approximately 2 million people in the UK have a diagnosis of a food allergy. In addition to this, 1 in 100 (approx. 600,000 people) have coeliac disease, which means they have to avoid gluten. 5-10% of children in the UK have a food allergy.
Burger King UK Allergy Menu Information
We would urge you to check the up to date Burger King allergy advice for the UK before ordering any food if you have allergies. If you check the Burger King allergy menu from 2019, for example, some dishes ingredients might have changed. Currently, the Burger King food allergy information on their website lists dishes that could cause allergies including the following:
Beef
- Angus Steakhouse brioche bun
- Bacon Cheeseburger
- Bacon KING
- BIG KING® XL
- BBQ Double Melt
- WHOPPER® Bacon & Cheese
- Cheeseburger
- Double WHOPPER® Bacon & Cheese
- Chilli Cheese Melt
- Bacon Double Cheese
- Double Cheeseburger
- WHOPPER JR.®
- Bacon Double Cheese XL
- Hamburger
- Double WHOPPER®
- WHOPPER® Bacon
- Double WHOPPER® with cheese
- Kids Cheeseburger
- WHOPPER JR.® with cheese
- Kids Hamburger
- WHOPPER®
- Triple WHOPPER®
- WHOPPER® with cheese
Burger King Breakfast Allergy Menu
- Bacon & Egg Sandwich
- Breakfast King with HP sauce
- Bacon & Egg breakfast HP sauce
- Breakfast King
- Sausage & Egg breakfast HP sauce
- Bacon Butty
- Sausage Butty
- Ultimate Breakfast with HP sauce
- Sausage Butty HP sauce
- Bacon Butty HP sauce
- Sausage and Egg sandwich
- Ultimate Breakfast sandwich
Chicken
- Chicken Royale® with cheese
- Crispy Chicken
- Chicken Royale®
- Kids Chicken Sandwich
- Chicken Sandwich
- Roadhouse Crispy Chicken UK
- Chicken Royale® with cheese and bacon
Extras
- White Cheese
- Smoky BBQ Sauce
- Sausage Patty
- Mustard
- Mayonnaise
- KING Sauce
- Ketchup
- HP Sauce
- Hamburger Patty
- Halloumi Patty
- Egg patty
- Crispy Onions
- Cheddar Cheese Sauce
- Black Angus Patty
- American Cheese
Others
- Chicken Salad
- Fish Finger Kids Meal
- Halloumi KING
- Halloumi Burger (single)
- Kids Veggie Burger
- KING Fish
Sides
- Chicken fries (all sizes)
- Chicken Nuggets (all sizes)
- Chilli Cheese Bites
- French Fries
- Hash Browns
- Jalapeno Chicken Fries (all sizes)
- Kids Nuggets
- Onion Rings
Sweet treats
- Caramel Sundae
- Chocolate Sundae
- Mini Ice Cream
- Chocolate milkshake (all sizes)
- Hot Chocolate Brownie with soft serve
- Ice Cream Cone
- Mini OREO® FUSION®
- Hot Chocolate Brownie
- OREO® FUSION®
- Strawberry Milkshake (all sizes)
- OREO®Shake
- Strawberry Sundae
- Vanilla Milkshake (all sizes)
Beverages
- Latte
- Cappuccino
- Flat White
- Americano
- Espresso
- Hot Chocolate
- Mocca
- Tea
- Milk
Make A No Win No Fee Allergic Reaction Claim Against Burger King
Have you considered making a claim but aren’t sure about how much you’d have to pay a personal injury solicitor to help you? With No Win No Fee claims, you don’t have to pay a penny in legal fees until such time as your case successfully concludes. And, if you don’t win your case, you don’t have to pay your lawyer any legal fees at all.
No Win No Fee claims generally work as follows:
- Your solicitor sends you a document known as a No Win No Fee agreement. Within the agreement document are details of the success fee you’ll pay them in the event of a successful claim. The success fee is legally capped and is usually a small percentage of your total payout. To ensure you get the compensation you deserve, the fee is lawfully capped.
- You sign the No Win No Fee agreement and send it back, allowing the lawyer to begin work on your case. They would negotiate a settlement for you or support you through the court process to get the compensation you deserve.
- Once the liable party or their insurer pays your settlement, your lawyer deducts their success fee, and the rest will be for your benefit.
What Happens If My Claim Ends Without Compensation?
If your lawyer cannot arrange compensation for you, they would not ask for the solicitor fees. If you would like to know more about these payment terms, please don’t hesitate to call us. Or, you could take a look at this No Win No Fee guide.
Talk To An Advisor
If you’d like to make an allergic reaction claim, or you’re looking for free legal advice to see whether you have a valid claim, you’re in the right place. Our expert team could assess your case and answer any questions you might have.
Whether you’ve suffered a peanut allergy, or you’ve experienced an allergic reaction because of cheese, gluten or another allergen, we’d be happy to talk to you. If you have evidence of a favourable claim, we can help you get started by connecting you with a No Win No Fee solicitor that could assist with your claim.
To contact us, simply:
- Call our helpline on 0161 696 9685
- Use Live Chat
- Use the ‘contact us‘ form
Further Information
Allergy Court Case – If you’re interested in claiming, you can read about previous allergy claims here.
NHS Allergy Treatment – Find out how you might be treated for nut allergies and the like in this guide.
A Parent’s Guide To Allergies – This parent’s guide to allergies could be useful if your child is allergic to something.
Allergic Reaction Claims – This guide explains what’s involved in making an allergy claim.
Food Poisoning – This case study could be of interest to you: it relates to a food poisoning incident.
Burger King Injury Claims – You can read about personal injury claims Burger King accidents here.
FAQs On Food Allergy Claims
What Kind Of Oil Does Burger King Use?
If you’re wondering what oil is in your Burger King food, it depends on the item you’re consuming. It could be corn, canola, soy or cottonseed. If you are concerned about a specific food item, then it may be wise to ask your server.
Does Burger King Cook With Peanut Oil?
While most chain restaurants have stopped cooking foods in peanut oils, you may find that some Burger King items contain peanut oil. Therefore, we would advise you to check when ordering.
What Is Dairy-Free At Burger King?
If you are wondering what to order that is dairy-free, it would be wise to check the Burger King allergy menu. Chicken fries, for example, may contain dairy, according to the menu.
Thank you for reading our guide exploring the justifications and evidence you might need to make on allergic reaction claim against Burger King.
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