Abimbola Duyile said her world has been ‘turned upside down’ since the death of her daughter Hannah Jacobs in February 2023
The mum of a 13-year-old girl who died after suffering an allergic reaction when she sipped a drink from Costa Coffee has told how wondering what she could have done differently keeps her up at night.
Abimbola Duyile said her world has been ‘turned upside down’ since the death of her daughter Hannah Jacobs, who sadly passed away on 8 February, 2023.
She had ordered the teenager – who was allergic to dairy – and herself a soya hot chocolate from their local Costa Coffee branch in Barking, East London when tragedy struck.
An inquest at East London Coroner’s Court earlier this month ruled that Hannah had died following a ‘failure to follow the processes in place to discuss allergies’ as well as a ‘failure of communication’ between staff and her mother.
Abimbola explained that on that fateful day, she had ordered the soya-milk based beverages – a claim which was disputed by the employee who made them – and asked for the equipment they were using to be cleaned beforehand.
It emerged at the inquest that the hot chocolate might have been made using cows’ milk, while the mum was not shown a book which explained the ingredients and how the drink was made.
Hannah Jacobs, 13, died last year following a severe allergic reaction to a Costa hot chocolate (Family Handout)
When Hannah became unwell a short time later after taking one sip of the drink, she shouted: “That is not soya milk.”
Her mother rushed the schoolgirl to a pharmacy to seek help, where the teen then passed out.
Staff gave Hannah an EpiPen – which is an auto-injectable device that administers life-saving medication to combat a severe allergic reaction – but she could not be saved.
A post-mortem examination concluded that the 13-year-old had died after suffering a hypersensitive anaphylactic reaction, which was triggered by an ingredient in her hot chocolate that caused an allergic response.
Speaking to the BBC, grief-stricken Abimbola told how she was racked with guilt and lies awake at night wondering what the outcome would have been if an EpiPen was administered earlier.
Describing her daughter as ‘bright, funny and full of life’, the mum said: “Most nights I stay awake thinking maybe there is something I could have done differently…maybe carrying an EpiPen with me.
“She [would] have been an amazing adult.”
Abimbola has now called on the government to raise awareness about the use of EpiPens and urged them to introduce changes so that people know how to recognise when someone is suffering from an allergic reaction.
Her mother Abimbola Duyile said she lies awake at night wondering what the outcome may have been if she had an EpiPen on her (BBC)
Abimbola also urged restaurants and coffee shops to ensure customers know the risk of allergens in products, as well as using better signage to indicate which items include them.
“If we can get the government at least [to] let people know the symptoms of someone having allergic reaction, it will be amazing,” she said. “They can save a life.
“Teach everybody how to use an EpiPen, whether it’s a kid or adult.”
Ministers will ‘carefully consider’ the views of allergy experts and any recommendations made by the coroner at Hannah’s inquest, a spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care told the BBC.
East London Coroner’s Court heard evidence from Costa Coffee employees who explained that their allergen training involved a series of online modules which could be accessed at home.
There was also a quiz that trainees had to pass, which one member of staff admitted they failed the quiz 20 times before they were successful.
Costa described the teenager’s death as a ‘tragedy’ (Peter Dazeley/Getty Images)
Abimbola continued: “Everybody needs to change their ways. If you’re training somebody, they can’t understand the allergen on the company website and it’s taken them 20 times to do it over again, you need to ask yourself , ‘[is] something off here?’
“Your staff should know what goes in everything. This should be a common basic thing. Every single person [in] restaurants, coffee shops need to know.”
Following the inquest, a Costa Coffee spokesperson said: “The loss of Hannah is a tragedy, and our heartfelt thoughts remain with her family and friends.
“Understanding how this awful situation occurred is in the interest of everyone – our franchise partners, our customers, our team members, and the communities of which we are a part.
“We have listened to everything the Coroner has said this week and will carefully consider her comments together with any report she may issue and respond appropriately.”
Costa said it is working alongside the Natasha Allergy Research Foundation – a charity raising awareness about allergies and will continue to review staff training procedures.
Featured Image Credit: PA/Robert Alexander/Getty Images
