If a solicitor turned down your nut allergy claim, or closed it because they did not think it would succeed, we will look again, free.
We do not take over a claim another solicitor is still running.
Call free 0800 652 0586, or ask us to call you back.
Example: if your claim settles for £3,000 before court proceedings are issued, you keep £2,700.
Carter and Carter Solicitors has two senior solicitors, Chris Carter and David Healey, and one of them runs every claim personally.
“While other Solicitors turned my case down, Dave Healey from Carter and Carter took up my claim, was so friendly and helpful, persevered and won my case. I’m overjoyed with the result and thankful. Highly recommended by me 100%.”
Julie · 256 five-star Google reviews
The call is free. Chris or David will look at why your claim was turned down and tell you whether we can take it on.
Prefer us to ring you? Ask us to call you back
The claim is against the business, not the staff, and its insurer usually pays.
Find your question
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Can you look again at my rejected nut allergy claim?
Often, yes. If a solicitor declined your nut allergy claim, or closed it because they did not think it would succeed, we will look again, free.
1.1 A solicitor turned down my nut allergy claim. Can you look at it again?
Often, yes. Carter and Carter Solicitors looks again, free, at a nut allergy claim a solicitor declined, or closed because they did not think it would succeed. It does not take over a claim another solicitor is still running.
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A solicitor saying no is not always the end. Some claims are turned down for good reasons, and if yours was, we will say so. Others are turned down because the claim is low in value, because the evidence needed had not yet been gathered, or because the dispute over what you told the staff looked hard to win.
Chris or David looks at what happened, what you told the staff or what the menu said, what medical record there is, and why the claim was turned down. Then we tell you whether we can take your claim on. We look at smaller nut allergy claims too: a reaction you treated with your own adrenaline pen is still an injury.
If a solicitor has turned your claim down, ring 0800 652 0586. No charge, no obligation.
1.2 My solicitor is still running my claim, but I am unhappy. Can you help?
No. Where a live claim is with another firm, please keep working with them. We can only look at a claim once a solicitor has closed the file or declined to take it on.
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Ending your agreement with your solicitor does not change this. That firm is usually entitled to its charges for the work it has done, often out of your compensation, so moving rarely leaves you better off.
If you are unhappy with the service, raise it with the firm first. Every firm must have a complaints procedure, and if the firm has not resolved it within eight weeks, or you are unhappy with its final response, you can go to the Legal Ombudsman.
1.3 The restaurant’s insurer has denied my claim. Is it over?
Not necessarily. A denial is often the insurer’s first answer, and the evidence usually decides who is right. If no solicitor is acting for you, we will look at whether we can take your claim on.
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Insurers often deny a nut allergy claim at first, usually by saying you never mentioned your allergy, or that the food did not contain nuts. Booking notes, an online order with your allergy typed in, the people who were with you, the allergen chart and your medical record often answer that.
If a solicitor is already acting for you, they deal with the denial. If you have been handling it yourself, ring 0800 652 0586. Our guide to what to do when the restaurant says you never told them explains the evidence that helps.
Why do nut allergy claims get turned down?
Usually because of a warning, missing proof, the time limit or the value. Some of those can be answered. Some cannot, and we will say so.
2.1 Why do nut allergy claims get turned down?
Usually because the person was warned the dish contained nuts, there is no proof the food contained them or caused the reaction, the claim was left too late, or the claim is low in value.
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A clear warning that a dish contained nuts, or might, followed by eating it anyway, can reduce or defeat a claim. So can having no way of showing what was in the food or that it caused the reaction. A claim started too late cannot go ahead.
Value is the other common reason. In our experience, some firms do not take lower-value claims. Carter and Carter Solicitors does look at them: a nut allergy reaction that cleared within days, or that you treated with your own adrenaline pen, is usually a smaller claim, but it is still a claim. Our nut allergy claims guide sets out what claims are usually worth.
2.2 What if the solicitor who turned me down was right?
Then we will tell you, and explain why. A second look is free whatever the answer.
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Some rejections are correct. If the evidence shows you were warned and ate the dish anyway, or the time limit has passed, we will say so plainly rather than give you false hope. We only get paid when a claim succeeds, so we only take on claims we believe in.
2.3 Can I still claim if I do not have much evidence?
Often, yes. Your own account and your medical record are evidence, and the business holds records you can ask us to obtain.
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Few people have every piece. A bank or card statement can prove where you ate. Your GP, NHS 111, pharmacy or A&E record shows the reaction. Booking notes, app orders and the allergen chart are held by the business, and we ask for them.
Keep whatever you have: packaging, photos, messages sent at the time, receipts and anything the business sent you. Our nut allergy evidence guide explains what matters most.
What do two senior solicitors look for in a rejected claim?
The evidence, the law, who the claim should be against, and the reason it was turned down.
3.1 What do you look for in a rejected nut allergy claim?
Because Chris Carter and David Healey, the two senior solicitors at Carter and Carter Solicitors, look at four things: the evidence, the law, who the claim should be against, and the reason it was declined.
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- 1The evidence. What there is, or can still be obtained: the booking notes, the online order, the allergen chart, the A&E notes or the people who were with you.
- 2The law. A restaurant must give you accurate allergen information under food information law (the Food Information Regulations 2014 in England, and the Food Information (Wales) Regulations 2014), and must take reasonable care once it knows about your allergy.
- 3Who the claim is against. The restaurant, a caterer, or the maker of a packaged product.
- 4The reason it was declined. Merit, value or time.
Turning round claims other firms had turned down is how the firm made its name after 2007. Our guide to your legal rights after a nut allergy reaction explains the law in more detail.
How long do I have, and what does it cost?
Usually three years from the date of the incident, and a rejection does not stop the clock. A second look costs nothing.
Nothing to pay if your claim fails.
Under our agreement there are just two exceptions, set out here and before you sign:
- 1You turn down an offer we advised you in writing to accept, and the court then awards you no more than it.
Whether to accept an offer is always your decision. We explain the risk, and what it could cost, in writing first. - 2A court finds you were dishonest about something central to your claim.
Neither exception has ever happened to one of our clients since 2007.
4.1 How long do I have after my claim was turned down?
Usually three years from the date of the incident, and a rejection does not pause that. We don’t usually take on a new claim close to that deadline, so ring early.
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The three years come from the Limitation Act 1980. There are some exceptions, so call us if you are unsure. If your claim was turned down a while ago, check the date now. Why we don’t take claims close to the time limit.
4.2 What does a second look cost?
Nothing. If Carter and Carter Solicitors takes your claim on, it is no win no fee: nothing to pay if your claim fails, except in two situations set out in your agreement, and 10% of your compensation, VAT included, if your claim settles before court proceedings are issued.
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If court proceedings are issued, our fee is 25%. Both figures include VAT. The two situations where you could have to pay are set out above, and in plain words in your agreement, which you read in your own time before you sign. See the worked example on our nut allergy claims guide.
4.3 Does it matter where I live?
No. Carter and Carter Solicitors acts for people across England and Wales, wherever they live, by phone, email and post, so you never need to visit.
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The restaurant can be anywhere in England or Wales. If a medical report is needed, it is usually a short video appointment with an independent GP.
25 clients came to us after another firm turned their claim down or dropped it.
Their claims were turned down elsewhere. We looked again, and took them on.
That does not mean every rejected claim can succeed. We will tell you honestly whether we can help with yours.
See the 25 clients other firms turned down
For other kinds of injury, see our guide to a rejected personal injury claim. For everything about nut allergy claims, see our nut allergy claims guide.
Why people choose Carter and Carter Solicitors
Example: on £3,000 settled before court proceedings are issued, our fee is £300 and you keep £2,700.
See for yourself: our fee, explained
You speak to Chris or David, the two solicitors who run every claim.
See for yourself: Chris and David, and the SRA register
We have acted for people up and down England and Wales since 2007. Everything is done by phone, email and post, so you never need to visit.
See for yourself: what our clients say
A no elsewhere is worth a second look.
See for yourself: the 25 clients
That is why you get a senior solicitor on your claim and a fee of 10% before court proceedings are issued.
A free call is not a sales call.
See for yourself: what our clients say
You can claim directly from the business’s insurer without a solicitor. If your reaction was mild and the business quickly accepts it was at fault, handling a small claim yourself can be sensible. The cost of going it alone is time, and the insurer knows what claims are worth when you may not. A free call tells you which route makes sense, and we will say so if you do not need us.
What happens when you call
A free, friendly conversation. Nothing to sign, nothing to pay.
Managing Solicitor, qualified 1993
Senior Solicitor, qualified 2005
- 1You speak to Chris or David, not a call centre.
- 2We ask what happened: where you ate, what you told them or what the menu said, and how the reaction affected you.
- 3Have the receipt, any photos and your medical record to hand if you can. You don’t need any documents to ring.
- 4We tell you honestly whether we can take your claim on and what you would keep, including if we think you should not claim.
- 5No obligation. If you go ahead, there is a short questionnaire, and one of us deals with your claim from there. If we cannot help, we say so.
Five quick checks: claims we can look at
Being told no once does not always mean the answer is no.
Chris Carter and David Healey, the two senior solicitors who run every claim.
Whether you claim is your decision. The call just tells you where you stand.
Prefer us to call you?
Leave your name and number and one of us will call you back. No medical details are needed to start.
Chris Carter: 01663 761891 · David Healey: 01663 761892 · Email: chris@candcsolicitors.co.uk or dhealey@candcsolicitors.co.uk
You’re in Safe Hands. That’s Our Promise.
Carter & Carter Solicitors Limited is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA number 449466). Registered in England and Wales, company number 06002212.
About Carter and Carter Solicitors
Chris Carter, Managing Solicitor, qualified as a solicitor in 1993 and has only ever done personal injury work. He founded Carter and Carter Solicitors in 2007. Chris runs food allergy, accident at work, public place and needlestick claims for adults across England and Wales. Rejected nut allergy claims are looked at by Chris and by David Healey, Senior Solicitor.
Carter & Carter Solicitors Limited is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA number 449466).