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AIBU?

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AIBU for wanting compensation from Morissons after getting ill from BBQ?

295 replies

TammiesBackHurts · 15/08/2026 19:43

Had a BBQ at ours last evening. It was me, DH, our two DC, my MIL and FIL, my sister and her partner. DH popped into Morrisons at about 2:30 to get the food, including a packet of their own-brand burgers.

We started the BBQ at 6:15 and ate at about 7ish. DH was cooking while I was getting everything else ready, so I wasn’t really watching the BBQ. Luckily… it was sweltering next to it. Got my burger straight off the thing, nothing wrong with it, just that normal brown edges and that bright pink in the middle just like you get from a BBQ burger. At about 10 I started feeling really unwell and was vomiting during the night. It’s now 7pm the day after and I still feel awful. This morning I looked at the burger packet and noticed the eat by date was 14/08/26, which is the exact day we ate them.

What is making me suspicious is that it was Morrisons own-brand food, so presumably Morrisons are responsible for making sure the date printed on their packaging is correct. If the date is wrong, how are customers supposed to know whether the food is actually safe? I relied on the date when I ate it. Nobody else who ate the burgers seems to have become ill, but I don’t think that necessarily rules them out because people react differently and I may have eaten more than everyone else. I still have the packaging and the receipt from Morrisons, so I have proof of exactly what I bought and when.

I’m considering contacting Morrisons and asking them to investigate the batch and explain why I’ve become ill after eating something on the actual use-by date. I’m also wondering whether I should be asking for compensation, because if their date was incorrect then surely that’s quite a serious food safety issue? AIBU?

OP posts:
italianmountains · 15/08/2026 20:01

I cannot believe this is for real. No one can be so stupid and entitled. I suspect the reason for the post was to wind people up about having a BBQ after the government warning. The rest is too ridiculous to be even taken seriously.

Bluestarberry · 15/08/2026 20:01

I think you overcooked it with the use of the word 'bright' there.

TammiesBackHurts · 15/08/2026 20:00

Raraskirtsagogo · 15/08/2026 19:58

You're not fooling me.

I seriously don’t understand what you’re talking about. Why is everyone on this app so rude?

OP posts:
Jaimelefromage · 15/08/2026 20:00

Ah come on everyone, this is clearly bollocks.

Goldengirl123 · 15/08/2026 20:00

You didn’t cook them properly!!! You had the heat too high. Absolutely nothing to do with Morrisons

ApplePieCinamon · 15/08/2026 20:00

Silly you! How are you a grown adult woman without knowing that you need to cook a burger. Do you eat mince raw or pink?? If not, same common sense applies.

Pedaling · 15/08/2026 19:58

TammiesBackHurts · 15/08/2026 19:57

How was I supposed to know that? I thought BBQ meat always was like that, I’ve had BBQ’s in the past and they were like that too. Are you sure that’s the problem?

No one can be this wilfully ignorant surely?

SpiritofaPanda · 15/08/2026 19:58

Of course this isn’t real. It’s a goady post trying to wind everyone up about bbq’s and wildfires. Because there’s no way anyone is this stupid.

Raraskirtsagogo · 15/08/2026 19:58

TammiesBackHurts · 15/08/2026 19:57

What does this mean?

You're not fooling me.

MildlyMoist · 15/08/2026 19:57

An adult asking this question? Not knowing that you can’t eat undercooked mince?

Jesus wept.

TammiesBackHurts · 15/08/2026 19:57

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

What does this mean?

OP posts:
TammiesBackHurts · 15/08/2026 19:57

WildGarlicSoup · 15/08/2026 19:53

The burger wasn’t cooked through.

Incredulous that anyone could actually be this stupid.

Therefore, I don’t believe this is real.

How was I supposed to know that? I thought BBQ meat always was like that, I’ve had BBQ’s in the past and they were like that too. Are you sure that’s the problem?

OP posts:
Raraskirtsagogo · 15/08/2026 19:57

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

SaraHoliday · 15/08/2026 19:55

TammiesBackHurts · 15/08/2026 19:43

Had a BBQ at ours last evening. It was me, DH, our two DC, my MIL and FIL, my sister and her partner. DH popped into Morrisons at about 2:30 to get the food, including a packet of their own-brand burgers.

We started the BBQ at 6:15 and ate at about 7ish. DH was cooking while I was getting everything else ready, so I wasn’t really watching the BBQ. Luckily… it was sweltering next to it. Got my burger straight off the thing, nothing wrong with it, just that normal brown edges and that bright pink in the middle just like you get from a BBQ burger. At about 10 I started feeling really unwell and was vomiting during the night. It’s now 7pm the day after and I still feel awful. This morning I looked at the burger packet and noticed the eat by date was 14/08/26, which is the exact day we ate them.

What is making me suspicious is that it was Morrisons own-brand food, so presumably Morrisons are responsible for making sure the date printed on their packaging is correct. If the date is wrong, how are customers supposed to know whether the food is actually safe? I relied on the date when I ate it. Nobody else who ate the burgers seems to have become ill, but I don’t think that necessarily rules them out because people react differently and I may have eaten more than everyone else. I still have the packaging and the receipt from Morrisons, so I have proof of exactly what I bought and when.

I’m considering contacting Morrisons and asking them to investigate the batch and explain why I’ve become ill after eating something on the actual use-by date. I’m also wondering whether I should be asking for compensation, because if their date was incorrect then surely that’s quite a serious food safety issue? AIBU?

How can you be so sure this item of food caused you to be ill?

Also, if the burger is pink inside, it's not been cooked sufficiently.

Morrisons may note your concern but I doubt it will progress further than that.

Mydogisagentleman · 15/08/2026 19:54

Do you think that you may bear some responsibility for continuing to eat something that clearly wasn't cooked properly 🤔

Whaleandsnail6 · 15/08/2026 19:53

I can't tell if you are being serious?

This is NOT on Morrisons

The food was in date.

You shouldn't eat a pink burger.

Sorry you're ill but I don't think this is Morrisons fault

TheWonderhorse · 15/08/2026 19:53

Oh Jesus wept. Really? Nah, this can't be real.

Imagine asking for compensation for eating a raw burger and being sick.

WildGarlicSoup · 15/08/2026 19:53

The burger wasn’t cooked through.

Incredulous that anyone could actually be this stupid.

Therefore, I don’t believe this is real.

QuirkyHorse · 15/08/2026 19:52

You need to send a poo sample to GP and get environmental health involved if you are trying to pin it on Morrisons. Keep it in the fridge, then it will be fine for testing.

Personally, I think you are flogging a dead horse if no one else is ill.

Daisydoesnt · 15/08/2026 19:51

Simonjt · 15/08/2026 19:48

Minced items need to reach 70° all over before eating, where as non-minced beef just needs to be seared on all outer surfaces.

This exactly! OP you don’t cook a burger (certainly not a mass produced one) like you cook a steak. This one is entirely on you.

TY78910 · 15/08/2026 19:51

You can’t prove that it was the burgers. But either way, just because I love a retail complaint. Can you prove that you have followed the below cooking instructions exactly:

Air Fry - From Chilled. Based on air-fryer capacity number of pieces minimum 1.8L - 1 piece minimum 3.8L - 2 pieces Pre-heat air fryer to 170°C. Remove all packaging. Place burgers in basket, spread evenly in a single layer. Cook for 14-15 minutes, turn halfway. Allow to stand for 1 minute.
Warning
Caution do not overfill the air fryer.; Barbecue - From Chilled. Follow the above instructions then place immediately onto a pre-heated barbecue for a further 5 minutes to finish off.; Cooking Instructions - General. Cooking appliances vary. These instructions are given as a guide. Ensure product is thoroughly cooked and that no pink colour remains. Do not reheat.
Safety
Store raw meat covered at the bottom of the fridge.
Use separate kitchen utensils and surfaces for raw meat and poultry or wash thoroughly after use. Keep raw meat and poultry separate from cooked foods, Wash hands after handling raw meat and poultry.; Grill - From Chilled. Pre-heat grill on high heat, remove all packaging and place the burgers under the pre-heated grill on the middle shelf for 12-14 minutes, turning halfway through.

^ I very much doubt it from your description. In which case - no case. The most they will do for you is a refund as a gesture of goodwill.

Thingcanonlygetbetter · 15/08/2026 19:51

Please do not contact Morrisons. The food was in date when you ate it. The problem is
“ just that normal brown edges and that bright pink in the middle just like you get from a BBQ burger”.
No burger bought from Morrisons should be pink in the middle. It should be cooked through so it is not pink and should have a core temperature of at least 75oC.
Yes we can eat rare burgers but there are very specific controls in place for the meat that would be minced for the making of such burgers. But def not a Morrisons burger. So whoever cooked the BBQ poisoned you and not Morrisons.

parall · 15/08/2026 19:51

This is a tall tale probably designed for us to show off our food hygiene knowledge about pink middles in burgers being dodgy as F.

SocksAndTheCity · 15/08/2026 19:50

It sounds as if the burger was undercooked to me. Unless you're buying prime beef and mincing it to make burgers yourself, they need to be very thoroughly cooked because any harmful bacteria on the surface of the meat is mixed all the way through it when it's chopped up and reformed, as opposed to a blue steak which is cooked as it is.

The vast majority of food poisoning cases are self inflicted, as I learned when I did my environmental health exams back in the day.

AmandaEatsLemons · 15/08/2026 19:50

Tammie, try cooking your food properly next time 🙃

Should NOT be pink!