Man who died after eating pizza did not tell takeaway of allergy, inquest hears

James Atkinson, 23, died around an hour after eating a few bites of a chicken tikka masala pizza in July 2020.

James Atkinson, 23, who from a severe allergic reaction to peanuts died after eating a takeaway pizza (family handout/PA) (PA Wire)

A computer programmer who died after eating a slice of a pizza he ordered via the Deliveroo app did not contact the restaurant to tell them he had a peanut allergy, an inquest heard.

James Atkinson, 23, and two flat-mates ordered three chicken tikka masala pizzas, chips and assorted Indian dishes on his phone from the Dadyal restaurant in Newcastle.

Around an hour after eating a few bites of the pizza he died in hospital from anaphylaxis due to peanut ingestion, the inquest at Newcastle Civic Centre has heard.

Mr Atkinson, a popular Newcastle University graduate who was originally from Leeds, used Google to see if the curried pizza was likely to contain nuts before the friends placed the order in July 2020, the inquest heard.

Luke Isley, 26, and Robert Raistrick, 27, gave evidence about what happened in their shared house in Jesmond that night.

Mr Isley, who works in IT, told the coroner he did not think Mr Atkinson mentioned his peanut allergy when he placed the order on the app, nor did he contact the restaurant directly.

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

“He said something about he was not sure about the pizza,” Mr Isley said.

“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 on the pizza, saying: “He was concerned that his lips were tingling so he was aware quite soon.”

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.

An ambulance, which Mr Atkinson was able to call himself, arrived swiftly and he was taken to the Royal Victoria Infirmary where efforts were made to resuscitate him, but he was sadly confirmed to have died around 40 minutes after arrival.

Mr Raistrick said Mr Atkinson could not direct them to where his EpiPen was, saying: “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 if Mr Isley 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 continues.