{"id":9016,"date":"2020-12-17T13:14:11","date_gmt":"2020-12-17T13:14:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/?p=9016"},"modified":"2025-06-18T14:01:28","modified_gmt":"2025-06-18T14:01:28","slug":"can-you-sue-a-restaurant-for-food-poisoning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/can-you-sue-a-restaurant-for-food-poisoning\/","title":{"rendered":"Can You Sue a Restaurant for Food Poisoning?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><iframe height=\"400\" style=\"width: 100%;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/e22axu05T6g\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Food-related illnesses may not seem like a common problem, yet the statistics are staggering. According to the Canadian government, an estimated 4 million Canadians get sick every year from food-related illnesses. Out of these cases, over 11,500 people are hospitalized, and more than 240 don&#8217;t live to tell the story. To further complicate matters, foodborne illness is particularly dangerous to infants, young children, the elderly, and people with chronic health conditions and weak immune systems.<\/span><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">So, should you or a loved one become a victim of food poisoning, what are your legal rights? <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/blog\/what-to-do-when-contaminated-food-makes-you-sick\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Can you sue a restaurant for food poisoning?<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Before we can answer that, we first need to understand what food poisoning is.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 dir=\"ltr\"><b>What to Do After Food Poisoning<\/b><\/h2>\n<h3 dir=\"ltr\"><b>Speak to a Manager<\/b><\/h3>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You need to notify the owner of the property that an accident has happened.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is essential to understand what is required and expected of a restaurant owner when it comes to liability. There are several things that a restaurant owner must provide for his or her customers and if this person is found negligent in any of these duties, he or she could be held liable for <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/blog\/what-you-need-to-know-to-understand-pain-and-suffering-damages\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">damages<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3 dir=\"ltr\"><b>Evaluate your Situation<\/b><\/h3>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Once you\u2019ve had the chance to be checked out by a doctor, you might come to the realization that you need a personal injury lawyer in Canada. A lawyer will help you to understand the impact of your case, potential future medical bills, and more.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you\u2019re looking at a lot of bills and a long recovery time, share this information with your attorney.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<h3 dir=\"ltr\"><b>Collect Information from Witnesses<\/b><\/h3>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Before you meet with an injury lawyer in Canada, you need to collect relevant information from witnesses.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Further evaluation of your situation is strongly recommended. You need to identify what caused your injuries, such as negligent hiring, premises liability or something else.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3 dir=\"ltr\"><b>Hire a Personal Injury Lawyer<\/b><\/h3>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Without a recognition of the underlying factors involved in your situation, your case may not be successful. Take the time to thoroughly evaluate your injury and consult with a dedicated personal injury lawyer.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 dir=\"ltr\"><b>Causes of Restaurant Food Poisoning<\/b><\/h2>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2020\/12\/03-Inner-image.jpg\" alt=\"Causes of Restaurant Food Poisoning\" width=\"768\" height=\"275\" class=\"size-full wp-image-9022 alignleft\" srcset=\"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2020\/12\/03-Inner-image.jpg 768w, https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2020\/12\/03-Inner-image-300x107.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Food poisoning, also commonly referred to as foodborne illness, results from consuming spoiled, toxic, or contaminated foodstuffs typically caused by bacteria or other toxins.<\/span><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Food-related illnesses are most often caused by:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">E. coli<\/span><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Norovirus<\/span><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Listeria<\/span><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Campylobacter<\/span><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Vibrio<\/span><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Salmonella<\/span><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Shigella<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Food industry employees not regularly washing their hands during the shift is more often than not the cause behind E. coli infections. Whereas salmonella results from placing cooked food on surfaces where raw chicken was prepared.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Food-related illnesses from either of these two sources can cause a number of symptoms, including high fever and severe diarrhea. There\u2019s a possibility that these symptoms may be life-threatening to vulnerable populations such as those with underlying conditions, the elderly, and children.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 dir=\"ltr\"><b>Proving a Restaurant Caused Your Food Poisoning<\/b><\/h2>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To win a lawsuit against a restaurant for potential food poisoning, you need to be able to prove that:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You consumed a meal at the establishment<\/span><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The vendor served you a contaminated product<\/span><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The incident occurred due to their negligence<\/span><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Your illness is a direct result of the tainted food<\/span><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Your damages are measurable<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 dir=\"ltr\"><b>Collecting Evidence of Food Poisoning<\/b><\/h2>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2020\/12\/001-Inner-image.jpg\" alt=\"Collecting Evidence of Food Poisoning\" width=\"768\" height=\"275\" class=\"size-full wp-image-9020 alignleft\" srcset=\"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2020\/12\/001-Inner-image.jpg 768w, https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2020\/12\/001-Inner-image-300x107.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Identifying the type of virus or bacteria responsible for your condition through medical testing is crucial if you plan on suing a restaurant for damages. Your doctor can run tests to determine your condition\u2019s origin and can send samples to the Center for Disease Control (CDC) in case an outbreak of foodborne illness forms what\u2019s known as a \u201ccluster.\u201d If your case is part of a cluster, your attorney will need to know about it.<\/span><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Gathering the following evidence will help your lawyer to pursue a successful lawsuit:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Packaging and food samples<\/span><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Witness testimony<\/span><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Verification of lost wages<\/span><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Medical bills, records, and receipts<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4 dir=\"ltr\"><b><i>Demand what&#8217;s fair and just when you&#8217;re a victim. Get your free consultation with a Diamond &amp; Diamond lawyer today.&nbsp;<\/i><\/b><\/h4>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><b>Liability and <a href=\"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/compensating-victims-when-accidents-cause-catastrophic-injuries\/\">Injury Compensation for Victims<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If a foodborne illness results in hospitalization or death, you&#8217;ll require the services of an experienced <a href=\"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/personal-injury-settlement-in-ontario\/\">personal injury lawyer<\/a> to pursue compensation from the implicated establishment. The defendant&#8217;s degree of negligence and the severity of your infection will determine the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/blog\/compensation-when-food-borne-illness-strikes\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">types of compensation<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> you can pursue. In general, though, you&#8217;ll be eligible for lost wages, medical expenses, emotional distress, <a href=\"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/calculating-pain-and-suffering\/\">pain and suffering<\/a>, and more. Your attorney will review your case, evaluate your chances of success, and provide you with an estimate of how much you can demand.<\/span><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When it comes to large-scale foodborne illness cases, also known as clusters, a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/class-action-litigation\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">class action lawsuit<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is typically the form of legal action used to pursue compensation for the entire group. Yet, there are specific issues related to foodborne illnesses that can make this process extremely challenging.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<h3 dir=\"ltr\"><b>Pro Tip:<\/b><\/h3>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8220;Wash your hands before and after eating.&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 dir=\"ltr\"><b>Can You Sue a Restaurant for Food Poisoning? FAQs<\/b><\/h2>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><strong>How long do I have to file my food poisoning lawsuit?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Canadian statute of limitations on product liability claims is 24 months from the date of the injury.<\/span><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><strong>What are some practical concerns with filing a food poisoning lawsuit?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are a few practical challenges. These include:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It can take up to 28 days for poisoning symptoms to become visible in the human body, making it difficult to pinpoint the source of your illness and prove who is responsible.&nbsp;<\/span><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The plaintiff has to prove that the food they ate was contaminated, and that it came from the restaurant and caused their illness.&nbsp;<\/span><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Foodborne illness cases are seldom severe enough to justify investing the time and cost to fight a lawsuit, not making it worth your while to pursue the case.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><strong>In a food poisoning case, how important is it to enlist an expert?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Soliciting the help of scientific and medical experts is an essential step in food injury cases. Expert witnesses can provide testimony on a particular illness, associated injuries, viral spreading, safety regulations, and more.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Food-related illnesses may not seem like a common problem, yet the statistics are staggering. According to the Canadian government, an estimated 4 million Canadians get sick every year from food-related illnesses. Out of these cases, over 11,500 people are hospitalized, and more than 240 don&#8217;t live to tell the story. To further complicate matters, foodborne&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9017,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[812],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9016","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-legal-needs","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9016","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9016"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9016\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9017"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9016"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9016"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/diamondlaw.ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9016"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}