Drinker given compensation after downing pint of bleach

A drinker has been awarded £1,200 compensation after he was served a pint of bleach at his local pub.

Jason Dodd, 60, was served the pint by a barman who was unaware they the pub's pipes had been flushed through with bleach to clear blockages.

As a result, he suffered injuries to his tongue, throat and stomach, which required treatment in a hospital's burns unit. He was also forced to take two weeks off work and could not speak.

Mr Dodd, from West Moors, near Ferndown in Dorset, said: "The barman put the pint of beer on the bar and it looked a normal colour so I just picked it up and took a large gulp.

"I immediately felt this horrendous burning sensation on my tongue and it continued all the way down into my stomach.

"It made me wretch and I was sick on the floor straightaway.

"I just had the most horrendous pain in my mouth and stomach - it was unbearable."

The landlady of the pub, Sally Canning, was fined £8,000 for breaches of the Health and Safety at Work Act.

29/08/2007 19:11