June 14, 2025
Posted by: OFT Food Safety & Injury Lawyers
Every year, nearly one in six Americans gets sick from foodborne diseases. Often, this occurs due to irresponsible food handling. If a restaurant caused your sickness, you have legal recourse to sue the restaurant for food poisoning. Especially if negligent actions caused your illness or if you were served food that was adulterated.
If you or a loved one gets sick after eating at a restaurant, contact OFT Food Safety & Injury Lawyers. We will evaluate your case and help you determine what steps you should take next. Call us at 888-828-7087 or use our online contact form to schedule a free consultation.
To successfully sue a restaurant for food poisoning, you must prove either that they served you adulterated food (strict liability) or that they had a duty, failed to meet that duty with negligent action or inaction (negligence), and that you were sickened as a result.
Generally, all restaurants are required to provide their customers with safe food. There are state and federal laws with regulations that restaurants must follow. If a restaurant serves you food that is contaminated with specific pathogens—such as E. coli or Salmonella—the restaurant is generally strictly liable for any injuries that result.
Restaurants may also be held liable if they were negligent in their food preparation or handling. In that case, you must have evidence that the restaurant, or one of its employees, did something that caused you to become ill. An example of negligence might be perishable food left out of the refrigerator that became tainted.
You can prove your injuries and financial damages with medical records and bills, lost wage forms, and similar documents.
You could recover compensation for any damages you incur, including those that are economic, directly linked to a monetary loss, and non-economic, subjective, non-monetary losses.
Medical expenses are typically among the most serious damages in a food poisoning case. In fact, according to the FDA, annual medical costs for all food poisoning cases in the U.S. total between $10 and $83 billion. However, you may still be eligible for compensation even if you didn’t go to the hospital.
You can get compensation for the following:
Foodborne illness occurs when a person consumes food or drinks contaminated by disease-causing microbes or pathogens. Many pathogens are spread through dirty water, contact with animals and food, and person-to-person spread. Poor food-handling practices are often to blame for many cases of foodborne illness, also known as food poisoning.
The most common food-handling practices include:
Unfortunately, there is a significant risk for the person who contracts food poisoning from a restaurant. You may face both financial and physical risks, as well as the symptoms you experience.
Medical bills can pile up quickly when dealing with food poisoning. If you get a severe case and become dehydrated, you will probably need to go to the ER or urgent care. Emergency care can cost several hundred dollars on its own. Then you will need to follow up with your doctor. Prescription and over-the-counter medications may be necessary.
You’ll probably miss work while you deal with the unpleasant symptoms of food poisoning. You’ll lose wages and other benefits, such as paid sick leave or personal days.
The symptoms you experience will depend on the type of pathogen that is causing your food poisoning. However, common symptoms include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fever, stomach cramps, and upset stomach.
Suppose a restaurant fails to meet all health codes and follow federal laws. In that case, the failure alone may be considered negligence, making them liable for your damages.
Food facilities must comply with the requirements for risk-based preventive controls mandated by the FDA’s Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) and the Current Good Manufacturing Practice (CGMPs) regulations. Those rules require food facilities to have a food safety plan in place that analyzes hazards and risk-based preventative controls to minimize and prevent dangers to consumers.
In addition to these federal regulations, every state has a restaurant health code. These codes include rules on safe refrigeration temperatures, handwashing, and more.
Medical records, stool or lab tests, receipts, and timing of symptoms can help connect your illness to a specific meal. Reports from the health department or other customers becoming sick at the same location can further strengthen your claim. An attorney can help gather and organize this evidence.
Yes. Even if your symptoms were treated at home or through urgent care, you may still have a valid claim for lost wages, medical costs, and suffering. Documentation of your illness and expenses remains important.
Each state has a statute of limitations that sets a deadline for filing claims, typically between 1 and 3 years. Waiting too long could prevent you from recovering compensation. Speaking with a lawyer promptly protects your rights.
When several people are affected, cases may involve group claims or class actions. Multiple victims can strengthen evidence that the restaurant’s food caused the illness. This often increases accountability and potential compensation.
Food poisoning cases against restaurants can be complex. The restaurant may deny your claim and attempt to avoid paying you what you are entitled to. Our food poisoning lawyers can help build a strong case to get you the compensation you deserve.
Contact OFT Food Safety & Injury Lawyers at 888-828-7087 for a free consultation.
