Lawyers representing two people made ill by the E. coli outbreak linked to lettuce leaves – including a girl from the US North West – have launched a lawsuit against Tesco and Asda seeking damages.
Law firm Fieldfisher told the PA news agency that it has issued letters of claim for breaches of the Consumer Protection Act over own-brand sandwiches bought in supermarkets. The claims involve an 11-year-old girl from the North West and a man from the South East.
The British Health Security Agency reported on Thursday that one patient has died from the E. coli outbreak. According to researchers, the outbreak is due to the salad used in sandwiches.
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Fieldfisher said the claim against Asda relates to the 11-year-old girl who contracted E.coli after eating an own-brand chicken salad sandwich she bought in one of its stores.
“The girl, 11 years old, developed the serious condition hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), which affects the kidneys, and has been on dialysis for three weeks,” the report said. “She was discharged home two days ago but may be at risk of permanent kidney damage. Her mother purchased three of the sandwiches as part of an online delivery.”
The company’s legal director, Harvinder Kaur, said she had sent a separate letter to Tesco on behalf of an adult man from the south-east of England. He had also been admitted to hospital with symptoms of E. coli after eating Tesco salad sandwiches.
“Fortunately, this client did not develop HUS and is now at home, but he was seriously ill for a period of time,” she said. “By law, companies that produce food have a duty to ensure that it is safe to eat. If it causes illness, that is a breach of duty and the injured are eligible to claim compensation, not least to fund possible ongoing medical care.
“My client regularly went to Tesco and bought his lunch there almost every day because it was close to his work.”
Several food manufacturers have recalled sandwiches, wraps and salads sold in major supermarkets and chain stores due to the spread of E. coli. The UKHSA said the number of cases it is seeing is declining, but more will come to light as more samples from NHS laboratories are referred to the company.
So far there have been 182 cases in England, 58 in Scotland, 31 in Wales and four in Northern Ireland. The latter cases are believed to have contracted their infection in England.
At least 122 people have been admitted to hospital for treatment since the outbreak began. Darren Whitby, the FSA’s head of incidents, said on Thursday that it believed a type of lettuce used in sandwich products was the likely cause of the outbreak.
He added: “While we are confident that the likely source of the outbreak is related to lettuce, work continues to confirm this and work with growers, suppliers and manufacturers to identify the root cause of the outbreak so that action can be taken taken to prevent another outbreak. incident.”
E. coli is a diverse group of bacteria that are normally harmless and live in the intestines of humans and animals. However, some strains produce toxins that can make people very sick, such as Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (Stec), the strain involved in this outbreak.
People infected with Stec may experience diarrhea, and about 50% of cases have bloody diarrhea. Other symptoms include stomach cramps and fever. Symptoms can last up to two weeks in uncomplicated cases. Some patients, mainly children, can develop HUS, which is a serious life-threatening condition that results in kidney failure.
A small proportion of adults may develop a similar condition called thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP). Stec is often spread by eating contaminated food, but can also be spread by close contact with an infected person, as well as by direct contact with an infected animal or where it lives.
People are advised to call NHS 111 or contact their GP if they are concerned about a baby under 12 months, if a child stops breast or bottle feeding while ill, if a child under five shows signs of dehydration (such as fewer wet diapers) and if older children or adults still show signs of dehydration after using oral rehydration sachets.