Information for businesses
To ensure that the scheme is fair to businesses, it has been designed to include a number of safeguards. These are:
- a right to an appeal
- a re-rating visit request
- right to reply
- consent for early publication of rating
A right to an appeal
If you feel your rating is wrong or unfair you should talk to the officer that inspected your food business in the first instance.
If you still think the rating is unfair or wrong, you can appeal in writing. To appeal, the owner or manager of the business must appeal in writing to the Lead Officer for Food at [email protected] within 21 days (this includes weekends and public holidays) of being told what your rating is.
A re-rating visit request
As the food business operator of the establishment you have a right to request a re-visit for the purposes of re-rating if you have taken action to rectify the non-compliances identified at the time of inspection.
You can usually make a request for a re-visit any time after the statutory inspection provided that you have made the required improvements. You must provide details of the improvements made with your request, including supporting evidence where appropriate.
If you were only required to make permanent structural improvements or repairs or to upgrade equipment, the local authority can choose to carry out the requested re-visit sooner than this. If the local authority considers that you have provided sufficient evidence that the required improvements have been made, a food safety officer will make an unannounced visit. The re-visit will be carried out within three months of the receipt of your payment of the fee.
The local authority officer will give you a ‘new’ food hygiene rating based on the level of compliance that is found at the time of the re-visit - you should be aware that your rating could go up, down or remain the same.
There will be a charge of £350 for each re-visit carried out at your request.
To do this, please complete the revisit application form form and return it by email to [email protected] or contact the Food Safety team online.
Right to reply
Businesses have a right to reply to their food hygiene rating by posting comments on at Food Standards Agency.
This allows you to explain any actions you have taken after your inspection to improve hygiene standards at your premises or to say if there were unusual circumstances at the time of the inspection that might have affected your food hygiene rating. It should not be used for complaints or criticisms of the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme or the food safety officer.
You can submit an food hygiene rating appeal form by email to [email protected] or by contacting the Food Safety team online.
Replies are vetted by the council before being published alongside the business's hygiene rating on the Food Standards Agency website.
Consent for early publication of rating
As the food business operator of the establishment you can request that your food hygiene rating is published on the Food Standards Agency website before the 21-day appeal period has elapsed.
Complete the early publication of rating request form and send to the Food Safety team.
Once the form has been received and checked the rating will be published on the website
Even if a business achieves the top rating there can be a short delay while the local authority updates the website. Local authorities upload ratings at least every 28 days. You should also contact the local authority if you are concerned that a business is deliberately displaying a higher rating to the one on the website to suggest it has higher hygiene standards than it actually does.