What is a food complaint?
If you purchase food from a shop or had a meal at a restaurant or café and found it contained something that should not be there, for example a hair or piece of plastic, then this can be classed as a food complaint. Environmental Health Officers from Dudley Council will investigate complaints about hygiene standards in food businesses. Trading Standards officers also deal with complaints about food such as food that is past its 'use by date', poor quality or has bad labelling or false descriptions. If you are concerned that you might also have food poisoning you can report it to us too but you may also wish to speak to NHS direct or visit your Doctor for health advice. Sometimes food is subject to a food alert which may mean that we may have to deal with your complaint differently.
Who should I contact?
You can make a complaint to us or you can contact the company where you purchased the food. If you choose to return the product to the place of purchase you can discuss the matter with the proprietor. However, it is very difficult for us to deal with the complaint if you have returned the product.
You should therefore make a decision on what you expect from your complaint prior to complaining i.e. money back, replacement or any other compensation. The Council cannot deal with any claims of compensation or refunds. This is a matter between the complainant and the retailer or manufacturer.
How can I make a food complaint?
You can make a complaint by any of the following methods:
If you bring the complaint to the attention the Food and Occupational Safety we will investigate the complaint to establish the nature and seriousness of the problem. It may be necessary to liaise with another local authority as the investigation is carried out where the product was purchased.
What will happen to my food complaint?
Once the officer investigating your complaint has collected the relevant information, the most appropriate action will be determined by reference to national and local guidance on food safety. You may find that your complaint has been referred to another Authority to investigate if it has been purchased outside the Local Authority's area or should be dealt with by another agency such as Trading Standards Departments or the Meat Hygiene Service.
In many cases, action taken will be informal. The investigating officer will give you an explanation of the outcome of the investigation and with your agreement disclose your details, i.e. name, address, etc. to the food business concerned. The Customer Services Section of most major food companies like to contact customers to provide assurance of the quality of their products. In other cases, the investigating Authority may wish to deal with matters in a more formal manner and take legal action. When this is necessary you will be requested to produce formal statements and further details may be requested from yourself.
It may take several weeks for the investigation to collect all the necessary evidence on which to decide what action is appropriate. You will always be kept informed of the outcome of the investigation and this is normally done in writing.
Complaints about food premises
We will only investigate complaints about food premises, which relate to food safety. They include:
We do accept anonymous complaints but use our discretion to take or not to take action based on relevant risk criteria. If you do leave your details we guarantee that they will be kept confidential. However, you may be asked to make a witness statement if your complaint results in legal action being taken against the premises.
How do I make a complaint?
Please use the contact form below or one of the other methods, giving as much details as possible. An officer is normally available between the office hours of 9am and 5pm and will respond normally within 5 working days, unless the matter is particularly serious, whereby the response should be as soon as possible.
What further Information is needed?
When we contact you we may ask for additional information. We will need to know:
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the name and address of the workplace or activity you are concerned about
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whether the risk is happening now and if not, when and where it occurred
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how long it is/has been going on for
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how often it happens
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who is at risk
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what further details and descriptions you have of your concerns
As your complaint could lead to prosecution(s), we may ask you and other witnesses to provide statements.
How do we investigate your complaint?
We will not always visit the premises you have complained about. After speaking to you and making an initial assessment we may decide to phone the premises and ask them to rectify the matter you are complaining about. If we feel it is necessary we will visit the premises you are complaining about to attempt to witness the matter being complained about. If we judge that health and safety legislation is being breached, we will ensure the issue is rectified. If we visit the premises and judge that all relevant health and safety legislation is being complied with, we can not legally require any improvements at the premises. We may be able to make suggestions for improvement but these are not enforceable.
How long does an investigation take?
The time taken to investigate a complaint will vary, ranging from a few days to many months. Cases that result in a enforcement action, other than a letter or verbal advice, can take over a year to complete.
What are the likely outcomes of your complaint?
The main aim of any complaint investigation is to make sure that unsafe conditions are made safe. The complaint investigation will also establish whether any health and safety offence has been committed.
If we have sufficient evidence to prove that an offence has been committed, we may consider enforcement action to rectify the concerns.
You will be told about the outcome of the investigation and the investigating officer will explain to you the reasons behind the final decision in your case.
How am I protected if I make a complaint?
Any complaint received by the Council will be dealt with sensitively and we will keep your identity confidential. Sometimes a business may want to apologise to you, in these cases we will only reveal your identity if you give your consent.
Will the Council's investigation help me to claim compensation?
The Council cannot give you advice about your right to compensation. You would need to take independent legal advice regarding this. The Citizens Advice Bureau may be able to provide further information regarding your legal rights and compensation alternatively you should speak to a solicitor.
