The owner of a business that failed to comply with a food improvement notice has been sentenced following a recent Trading Standards investigation.
On Thursday 2 November at Staines Magistrate Court, Arulnantham Jogeswaran, 53, Chessington, owner of Royal Chicken and Pizza in Dorking, was charged with failing to comply with a notice that required the business to display how allergy information would be given to consumers. This is important as consumers need to know how they can obtain information about allergies from the food business before choosing their food.
Trading Standards officers completed multiple visits to the premises between March and June 2022. On each occasion, advice was given along with the opportunity for the premises to achieve compliance. Despite this, the premises remained non-compliant throughout.
A food improvement notice was subsequently issued, providing the premises with two weeks to make the recommended changes. Trading Standards conducted a further visit once the two weeks were up but found there had still not been any substantial improvement made.
At the hearing, the defendant pleaded not guilty to the charges on the basis that he was not the proprietor of the business at the time the improvement notice was issued. This was despite being the named individual paying the business rates, and the individual named on the employer’s liability insurance certificate displayed at the premises.
Upon review of this evidence, the Bench determined that the defendant was the proprietor at the time of the food improvement notice, had therefore failed to comply with the notice and was subsequently found to be guilty.
The following charges were issued:
- £576 fine
- £2,500 costs
- £230 Victim Surcharge.
- Payment ordered at a rate of £150 per month on the 10th of each month.
Kevin Deanus, Surrey County Council Cabinet Member for Fire and Rescue, and Resilience said: “This was important work from our Trading Standards team to help clamp down on what was a dangerous restaurant practice.
“We want our residents to feel safe in their communities and to know that we are looking out for them, and outcomes like this form an important part of that.
“I’d like to thank the Trading Standards officers involved with this investigation for their diligent and hard work, both in establishing ownership of the premises and in giving evidence at the trial. Together, we will continue to do all we can to keep the residents of Surrey safe.”
