Allergen Incident Customer Communication

A calm, well-rehearsed allergen incident response protects the customer first and your business second. When a diner reports an allergic reaction, the way your team acts in the first few minutes, and the way you follow up in the days after, shapes both the health outcome and the legal and reputational consequences. This guide sets out exactly what to do: the immediate medical priority, what to say and what not to say, the internal investigation, the written follow-up, and when to notify regulators and insurers. It aligns with the Plain English Allergen Labelling (PEAL) requirements under Standard 1.2.3 of the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code. The First Five Minutes: Medical Care Comes First If a customer reports an allergic reaction, your immediate priority is their medical safety . Call 000 without hesitation if you see any signs of a severe reaction or anaphylaxis: difficulty breathing, swelling of the face, lips or throat, a widespread rash, dizziness or collapse. If the customer carries an adrenaline auto-injector (such as an EpiPen) and is unable to use it, help them as directed by the 000 operator. Do not wait to see whether symptoms worsen, anaphylaxis can escalate within minutes. What Should Staff Say in the Moment? Train every team member on the initial verbal response so it is consistent and compassionate: Express genuine concern and never minimise what the customer is experiencing. Act medically first, talk later. Getting help is more important than gathering information. Collect contact details for follow-up once the person is safe. Do not admit liability or assign blame on the spot. Saying "we must have made a mistake" before any investigation can be inaccurate and prejudicial. Focus on care, not fault. Rehearse this response with your team in advance. A calm, coordinated reaction is only possible if staff have practised it, know their roles, and understand that helping the customer always comes before protecting the business. A short scenario during a toolbox talk, who calls 000, who supports the customer, who alerts the manager, pays for itself the first time a real incident occurs. Internal Steps: Preserve the Evidence While one person supports the customer, another should begin the internal response. Notify the Food Safety Supervisor (FSS) , immediately stop service of the suspect dish , and photograph the plate and any packaging. Quarantine the ingredient batches involved so they are not used or discarded, and record the batch codes. Then open a structured corrective action investigation to establish the root cause, whether that was a recipe change, a mislabelled ingredient, cross-contact during prep, or a service error. Our PEAL compliance tools log the incident with regulator notification fields built in. Recognising the Signs of Anaphylaxis Every team member should be able to recognise a severe reaction, because minutes matter. Warning signs include difficulty or noisy breathing , swelling of the tongue, throat, face or lips , a persistent cough or wheeze , hives or a widespread rash , abdominal pain or vomiting , and signs of shock such as pallor, dizziness or collapse. Any one of the breathing or swelling signs indicates a potential emergency. The correct response is to call 000 immediately, help the person stay still and, if they have an adrenaline auto-injector, assist as directed. Do not wait to "see how it develops", anaphylaxis can progress rapidly. Building this awareness into staff training means the first responder is whoever happens to be nearest, not just the manager. The Written Follow-Up Within 24 to 48 hours , send the customer a written follow-up. Keep it honest, factual and non-defensive. A good follow-up includes genuine empathy for what they experienced, a brief summary of what your investigation has found, the concrete actions you have taken to prevent recurrence, and a named contact for any further questions. Avoid legalistic language and avoid speculation. If liability is genuinely unclear, it is reasonable to say the investigation is ongoing rather than making claims you cannot yet support. What to Document, and Why It Matters Thorough documentation protects the customer, your team and your business. As soon as it is safe to do so, record the date and time , the customer's account of what they ate and how they reacted, the dish and its components , the batch codes of the ingredients involved, the staff present , and the actions taken , including whether 000 was called. Keep the photographs of the plate and packaging with this record. Good documentation serves several purposes: it drives an accurate root cause investigation, it gives your insurer the facts they need, it demonstrates your due diligence if the matter is ever reviewed by a regulator or court, and it helps you spot patterns if similar incidents recur. Vague or missing records, by contrast, can leave you unable to explain what happened or prove you responded appropriately. A structured digital incident log ensures every field is captured consistently, every time, rather than relying on someone to remember the details after a stressful shift. When Must You Notify Regulators and Insurers? Serious allergen incidents may require notification to your local council and, in some circumstances, FSANZ, particularly if a labelling failure could affect other products or customers. Notify your insurer promptly too: many policies require timely notification of any incident that could give rise to a claim, and failing to notify can jeopardise your cover. Keep the customer's contact details, the photographs, batch records and your corrective action all together as a single incident file. Turning an Incident Into Prevention Once the immediate response and follow-up are complete, the incident should feed directly into prevention so it cannot happen again. Run a full corrective action that identifies the true root cause, whether it was an out-of-date allergen matrix, a silent supplier recipe change, cross-contact during preparation, or a communication breakdown between front and back of house. Update your allergen declarations, re-brief the team, and, if a labelling failure could affect other products, consider whether a withdrawal or recall is warranted. Keeping accurate allergen information current is far easier with digital tools that flag any recipe or ingredient change automatically, which is exactly what the PEAL requirements under Standard 1.2.3 are designed to support. Frequently Asked Questions What is the first thing to do if a customer has an allergic reaction? Prioritise medical care. Call 000 immediately if there are any signs of a severe reaction or anaphylaxis, such as difficulty breathing or facial swelling. Assist with an adrenaline auto-injector if the customer has one and cannot use it themselves. Should we apologise or admit fault straight away? Express genuine concern and care, but do not admit liability before you have investigated. Focus on the customer's wellbeing first, then run a factual investigation and communicate findings honestly in your written follow-up. Do I have to report an allergen incident to the regulator? It depends on severity and cause. Serious incidents, or labelling failures that could affect other products, may require council or FSANZ notification. When unsure, contact your local council for guidance and notify your insurer. How do I stop allergen incidents recurring? Keep an accurate allergen matrix, review it whenever a recipe or supplier changes, enforce separation during prep, and train staff to confirm allergen orders with the kitchen. Digital PEAL tools keep declarations current automatically. Learn more in our food safety guides , or set up structured incident logging, view pricing or contact us . Continue reading: anaphylaxis response plan