Allergy questions on phone orders: what UK takeaways must do

It is 7.40pm on a Saturday. The phone rings while the fryer is full and the counter is three deep. "Does the chicken satay have peanuts in it? It's for my son, he's allergic." Whoever picks up has about two seconds to decide whether to answer from memory or go and check.

Guidance checked October 2026. The Food Standards Agency's best practice guidance was due for review in September 2026, so check its site for a newer version before relying on this.

That two seconds matters more than any other part of a phone order. The Food Standards Agency's adult food allergy study found that around 6% of UK adults, roughly 2.4 million people, have a clinically confirmed food allergy, and more than 30% report some kind of adverse reaction to food (FSA, 2024). Allergy questions are not rare on a takeaway phone line. They are routine, and a wrong answer can make someone seriously ill.

This guide covers England, Wales and Northern Ireland, where the FSA's guidance applies. In Scotland, check Food Standards Scotland. It is general information, not legal advice; your local authority's food or trading standards team can advise on your own business.

What does the law ask of phone orders?

When food is sold by phone, the law treats it as distance selling, and the FSA says allergen information must be available at two points: before the purchase is completed, and when the food is delivered (FSA allergen guidance). At both points it can be given in writing or orally, but the FSA's advice is that written information at both stages works best.

The information covers the 14 allergens food law requires you to declare: celery, cereals containing gluten, crustaceans, eggs, fish, lupin, milk, molluscs, mustard, peanuts, sesame, soybeans, sulphur dioxide and sulphites, and tree nuts.

Three points owners often get wrong:

• It must be accurate. The FSA's best practice guidance says accurate allergen information "is a legal requirement", not just good service.
• Natasha's Law is usually not the issue. The full ingredient labelling rules for prepacked for direct sale (PPDS) food do not apply to food sold by phone or online, and food packed after the customer orders it is non-prepacked (FSA PPDS guidance). The two point rule above still applies.
• You do not have to make an allergen free meal. Trading standards guidance says you must give accurate information, but you have no legal obligation to provide allergen free food, and you can say no (Business Companion).

What does FSA best practice add?

In February 2025 the FSA published best practice guidance for non-prepacked food (FSA best practice). It is not law, but the FSA says following it should help you meet your responsibilities. For phone orders, it asks you to:

• Ask before taking the order whether the caller needs allergen information.
• Keep written information one click away from your online menu, and make sure customers ordering through third party apps are told where to find it.
• Record the requirement accurately and pass it in writing to whoever prepares the food, with confirmation that they have received and understood it.
• Decide who handles allergy orders. The FSA gives the example of a supervisor or head chef; everyone on shift should know the process.
• Label at delivery, for example a sticker reading "Contains: wheat, soy, fish, peanut", and show any customisation.

The safest answer to "is it safe for me?" is the one read from your allergen file, never the one remembered at the pass.

What should staff say when a caller mentions an allergy?

Put this on a card by the phone. It works for any member of staff, and it is the standard to measure any answering service against.

If whoever answers cannot reach the allergen information, trading standards guidance is blunt: when asked whether a dish is safe for someone with an allergy, "the answer must always be no", and the customer must be told their safety cannot be guaranteed.

What does a good allergy call look like?

These are example inputs, not real data. An example takeaway's allergen matrix lists chicken satay as containing wheat, soy, fish and peanut. A caller asks for chicken satay and egg fried rice for a child who must avoid peanuts.

1. Staff ask the allergy question first, as step 1 above.
2. The matrix shows the satay contains peanut, so staff say so and do not offer to "leave the sauce off" unless the kitchen has confirmed it can do that safely.
3. The caller switches to a dish the matrix shows without peanut. Staff explain that peanuts are used in the kitchen and cross contact cannot be ruled out, as the matrix notes.
4. The ticket reads: "ALLERGY: peanut. Child. Kitchen to confirm." The chef initials it before cooking.
5. The bag carries a sticker listing the allergens in each dish.

Nothing in that call needed a guess. It needed a written matrix, a fixed question and a written handover.

Where does an AI receptionist fit, and where must it stop?

If calls ring out at peak, an AI receptionist can answer them instead, but allergens are where it has to be most careful. VolaVoice answers only from information you have approved. If your allergen information is not approved, it should take the caller's name, number and requirement and pass them to your team; those messages are emailed to you.

Order details it takes are passed on and awaiting confirmation; your team should confirm the order, and any allergy note, before anything is cooked. Calls are not recorded, but you get a written transcript and summary of each one, so you can see exactly what the caller said.

What it cannot do, honestly: it does not take payments, it does not quote prices from your menu, it does not confirm orders, and it should not be the last check on an allergy. That stays with your team and your allergen file. Our advice is to approve only where your written allergen information can be found, and let every "is it safe for me?" question come to a person.

If you are weighing an AI receptionist against a human answering service for this kind of call, our comparison of the two sets out the trade-offs. To see what unanswered calls cost you, start with how much missed calls cost a restaurant or takeaway. Plans and minutes are on the pricing page.

What should be on your allergen checklist?

• Allergen matrix covering all 14 allergens for every dish, dated and kept by the phone
• Written allergen information on your website, no more than one click from the menu
• Allergy question on the script card, asked on every call
• A named person on each shift for allergy orders
• Allergy notes passed to the kitchen in writing and acknowledged
• Stickers or a marked menu in every delivery and collection bag
• Recipe or supplier change means the matrix is updated the same day
• Staff have done the FSA's free allergy training

Try the free demo with your own website and test the questions your callers ask, allergy questions included, before anything goes live.