By Chris Carter, Managing Solicitor · April 2026

You took an antihistamine. You sat it out at home. Maybe you called 111 but they said monitor it. You felt rough for a few days, and then gradually it passed.

And now you’re wondering whether any of that actually counts.

It does. A food business broke the law when it failed to tell you what was in your food. The Food Information Regulations 2014 require every food business in England and Wales to declare the 14 listed allergens.

If they did not, and you had a reaction because of it, you have grounds for a compensation claim. The severity of the reaction changes the amount of compensation. It does not change your right to claim.

My Reaction Wasn’t Bad Enough for Hospital. Does That Mean It Doesn’t Count?

This is the question we hear more than almost any other. The legal test for an allergy claim is not “how bad was the reaction?” It is “did the food business fail in its duty, and did that failure cause you harm?”

Harm means swelling, itching, vomiting, stomach cramps, skin reactions, breathing difficulty, anxiety, and the disruption to your daily life in the days that followed. You do not need to have used an EpiPen. You do not need to have arrived at A&E in an ambulance.

Under the Food Safety Act 1990, a business that sells food not matching what the customer asked for has committed an offence. That applies whether you end up in hospital or recover at home with antihistamines and a very bad night.

I Just Took an Antihistamine and Waited It Out. Is That Really Enough?

Yes. Many of the allergy claims we handle at Carter & Carter involve exactly this. The person had a reaction. They took medication at home.

They felt unwell for anything from a few hours to several days. They did not call an ambulance.

The compensation for these claims reflects what actually happened to you. The Judicial College Guidelines set brackets for allergic reactions based on severity and duration, and an A&E visit is not the dividing line.

What matters more is whether the food business had a system for managing allergens. Did they ask you about allergies? Did you tell them?

Did the menu declare the allergen? Was the information wrong, missing, or ignored? Those are the questions that decide liability.

What Actually Counts as Evidence If I Didn’t Go to Hospital?

People assume that without a hospital record, there is no evidence. That is not true. Evidence in allergy claims comes from several places, and most of them have nothing to do with A&E.

None of these require a hospital visit. All of them help build a picture of what happened and when.

When we send a letter of claim to the food business, we request their allergen records, training logs, and any CCTV footage. The Food Standards Agency requires every food business to have documented allergen procedures. If those procedures were missing or ignored, the business’s own records fill in the gaps.

I’m Worried They’ll Say My Reaction Was Only Mild

They might. And that changes the amount of compensation, not whether you can claim at all.

Even a reaction described medically as “mild” involved a food business breaking the law. You told them about your allergy, or the menu failed to list the allergen, and you ate something that made you ill.

Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, a service must be performed with reasonable care and skill. A worse outcome was possible, but that does not make your outcome acceptable.

Compensation for allergic reactions treated at home or by a GP typically reflects the physical symptoms, how long they lasted, any anxiety about eating out afterwards, and any time off work. For simple allergy claims, the process usually takes 2 to 6 months from start to finish.

Which Allergen Caused Your Reaction?

We handle claims across all 14 legally listed allergens. Find yours below to see how the law applies to your specific allergy.