Supreme Law News

When food served at a wedding causes diarrhea, is it violation of Consumer rights

A civil excise officer filed the complaint, claiming that he had food illness from eating provided food at a wedding celebration.

Following the consumption of food provided by the caterers at a wedding, a customer developed infectious diarrhea and experienced stomach pain.

A district consumer court in Ernakulam, Kerala, has ordered a catering unit to pay ₹ 40,000 to this customer [Umesh V v. Vijayan George & Anr.].

After concluding that the catering unit was guilty of a significant defect in service and engaged in unfair trade practices, the district forum's president, DB Binu, and members, V Ramachandran and Sreevidhia TN, passed the order.

A civil excise officer submitted the complaint, claiming to have contracted food illness from food he had eaten at a wedding celebration that had been provided by St. Mary's Catering.

According to the complaint, a number of other guests experienced vomiting and diarrhoea following their meal.

He added that the meal from the aforementioned catering business caused him to have severe stomach pain and frequent bowel movements, which resulted to his hospitalization and ₹ 11,845 in medical bills.

The claimant demanded ₹ 50,000 from the caterers in recompense for his trauma. He claimed that the caterers' unjust business methods and poor service rendered him ill, requiring three days in the hospital, and prevented him from going to work for a week.

It was observed by the Ernakulam District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (DCDRC) that the caterers had not appeared or offered a defence before the consumer hearing. The commission decided in the complainant's favor, interpreting this as an admission of guilt.

The commission came to the conclusion that the complaint suffered severe annoyance, mental discomfort, hardships, and financial losses as a result of the catering unit's negligence.

Thus, the consumer forum awarded the complaint ₹30,000 in compensation together with ₹10,000 for fees incurred throughout the legal proceedings.

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( LLM, MBA, (UK), PhD, AIMA, AFAI, PHD Chamber, ICTC, PCI, FCC, DFC, PPL, MNP, BNI, ICJ (UK), WP, (UK), MLE, Harvard Square, London, CT, Blair Singer Institute, (USA), Dip. in International Crime, Leiden University, the Netherlands )

Advocate & Consultant Supreme Court of India, High Courts & Tribunals.