Wahaca diners in line for pay-outs after restaurant chain admits liability over norovirus outbreak

Diners who fell seriously ill after eating at Wahaca may be in line for substantial payouts after the restaurant chain admitted liability in a number of cases.

About 160 customers and 200 staff complained that they had contracted norovirus last year, forcing nine of the Mexican restaurants established by Masterchef winner Thomasina Miers to close temporarily last November.

Lawyers acting for some of the victims say they hope to secure “swift justice”, with payments in excess of £15,000 expected for those left seriously ill or facing long-term complications.

One diner, Sarah Cousins, 16, of Wallingford, Oxfordshire, was hospitalised with severe gastric symptoms after visiting the Westfield branch in White City at the end of October. The A-level student, who has Type-1 diabetes, went on to develop the potentially life-threatening illness ketoacidosis. She was absent from college at a critical point in her studies.

Her father, Dr Mike Cousins, instructed lawyers in Irwin Mitchell’s public health team to investigate, and Wahaca’s insurers have accepted blame for its seven clients. A letter from the insurer states: “Liability is admitted for this incident.”

Dr Cousins, 48, said: “Wahaca’s admission of liability is a very welcome sign. It has been awful to see how this illness has affected Sarah. We were incredibly worried when she was admitted to hospital and it was a shock to see the impact that the illness had on her diabetes.”

Amandeep Dhillon, of Irwin Mitchell solicitors, who is representing the Cousins family and six other diners, said: “While many people do recover within days, such illnesses can have a lasting impact on victims and — in cases like Sarah’s — lead to further complicating and serious health problems.”

Five of the nine restaurants closed temporarily were in London — Westfield, Covent Garden, Canary Wharf, Soho and St Paul’s. Mark Selby, co-founder of Wahaca, said: “We were contacted by the Cousins family in November and spoke with them directly regarding their daughter Sarah. Following a claim from their lawyers, we are now in correspondence with them to ensure that Miss Cousins’ case gets resolved swiftly and fairly.”

A spokesman added: “Any cases brought to Wahaca’s attention are being dealt with on an individual basis, and are being treated as swiftly and fairly as possible.”

Public Health England said a report on the case would be published shortly. In an interview with the Standard earlier this year, Ms Miers said she was proud of the way Wahaca had acted so swiftly to tackle the outbreak.