James Atkinson 'did not tell restaurant of nut allergy', inquest told

James Atkinson had a serious peanut allergy

A man who died after eating takeaway pizza did not tell the restaurant he had a peanut allergy, an inquest heard.

James Atkinson, 23, became unwell after eating food ordered from Dadyal in Newcastle on 10 July 2020.

His flatmate Luke Isley told a hearing that he did not think Mr Atkinson, originally from Leeds, mentioned his allergy when he ordered via Deliveroo.

The inquest has heard that the computer programmer died from anaphylaxis an hour after ingesting peanuts.

Mr Isley, 26, also told the inquest at Newcastle Civic Centre that he did not think his friend contacted the restaurant directly to tell them about his allergy.

He and another flatmate, Robert Raistrick, 27, gave evidence about what happened in their shared house in Jesmond that night.

'Started to panic'

As little as 30 seconds after starting his first slice of the chicken tikka masala pizza, Mr Atkinson, a Newcastle University graduate, raised concerns about what he was eating, Mr Isley said.

"He said something about he was not sure about the pizza," he added.

"At first I thought maybe he didn't like it.

"When he first mentioned about nuts, that's when me and Rob started to panic."

Mr Raistrick, a software developer, recalled how Mr Atkinson quickly fell ill after starting to eat the pizza.

"He was concerned that his lips were tingling so he was aware quite soon," Mr Raistrick said.

Mr Atkinson's flatmate told the inquest that he did not think he contacted the Dadyal restaurant about his peanut allergy

The two flatmates began to look for Mr Atkinson's EpiPen without success.

Both had seen one in a house they had shared previously, but they could not find one in their current property.

Mr Atkinson, who called the ambulance himself, was taken to Newcastle's Royal Victoria Infirmary where efforts were made to resuscitate him.

He died about 40 minutes after arrival, the inquest heard.

Mr Raistrick said Mr Atkinson could not direct them to his EpiPen.

He said: "I don't believe he knew where it was either - I cannot be certain."

Coroner Karen Dilks asked Mr Isley if there had been any discussion about the type of food the friends would order and whether it was suitable for Mr Atkinson.

Mr Isley said: "When we were looking at menu options, James had mentioned about whether the type of pizza was likely to have nuts in it.

"James used his computer to see if that type of curry does have nuts in it."

Mrs Dilks asked Mr Isley if he had seen any warning on the Deliveroo app to contact the restaurant directly if someone had a query about allergens.

He replied: "There might have been but I didn't see them if there were."

The inquest, which is set to last two weeks, continues.