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Unsafe or poor quality food bought in shops

The law says food you buy must be safe and of satisfactory quality. If food is unsafe or poor quality it may be mouldy, gone off, out of date or contaminated.

This page tells you what you can do if there’s something wrong with food you bought from a shop, market or street vendor.

For problems with food you bought in a restaurant see Problems with restaurants.

Top tips

Keep the food as evidence

If you have a complaint about poor quality or unsafe food you should keep the food item if possible as evidence. You could keep it in a sealed freezer bag. The shop or manufacturer is unlikely to give you a refund or replacement without it. You should also keep your receipt if possible as proof of purchase.

Take it back to the shop

If you’ve bought food that is unsafe or poor quality, you can take it back to the shop where you bought it. You should do this as soon as possible and take your receipt. Ask for a refund or replacement. If you have already eaten the food, you won’t be able to get a refund or replacement.

Send it to the manufacturer

Returning food or a sample of the food, to the manufacturer may be the best option. Where a complaint is justified, a food manufacturer may well provide compensation in order to maintain their reputation.

Even if the food was not harmful, a manufacturer will usually provide a refund plus postage, and will often provide more.

Report it to Environmental Health

If the shop has sold unsafe or harmful food, they may have committed a criminal offence. You could report them to your local environmental health department, who may investigate. You should keep all the food, including foreign bodies and any packaging, in case you need it for evidence.

Trade associations

If the response of the trader or manufacturer is unsatisfactory, you may be able to report the matter to a relevant trade association if the trader or manufacturer is a member.

If you get food poisoning

If the food has given you food poisoning you may be entitled to compensation from the trader or food manufacturer as well as a refund. You should get a letter from the doctor as evidence confirming your illness as a result of bad food. If you still have some of the food product, you could keep it as evidence as well. Before you make your complaint, make sure you followed the food cooking instructions fully.

If you want to claim compensation, you should get legal advice.

You should also report the issue to your local environmental health department.

How do you know if food is unsafe or poor quality?

Food is unsafe for consumption if:

  • it is harmful to health. For example, it hasn’t been treated or cooked properly or it contains harmful ingredients
  • it is unfit for consumption. For example, it is mouldy or decomposed
  • it is contaminated to the extent that it is unreasonable to expect it to be consumed. This would include residues above permitted levels of chemicals, pesticides and additives to animal feed.

Food is of poor quality if:

  • it is not of the quality or nature that you have a right to expect of it. For example, rump steak sold as fillet steak
  • it does not meet standards set down in composition regulations.

Food is out of date

Most foods must carry a best before date or a use by date. These dates give you an indication of how long the food will last if stored correctly. Some foods do not have to have date marks. These include whole fresh fruit and vegetables, wines, alcoholic drinks with a strength of 10% or more, bread products intended to be eaten within 24 hours, or vinegar.

Best before dates

The best before date indicates when food is at its best. Once this date has passed, the food may be in a less good condition. For example, crisps may have gone slightly stale. Food past its best before date is still safe to eat. Shops can sell food past its best before date.

Use by date

Use by date marks are mostly used for foods that don’t last long, such as eggs, milk, bread, meat or fish. If you eat food that has passed its use by date you could be at risk of food poisoning. Shops are not allowed to sell food that has passed its use buy date.

Making a complaint

If you bought food by mistake that was passed its use by date, take the food back to the shop with your receipt. The law says you can ask for a refund or replacement.

If a shop has sold food past its use by date they may have committed an offence.

You could report it to trading standards.

Next steps

Citizens Advice

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