Sponsored by
Leeds sandwich had stone in it
A SANDWICH bought at a shop in Leeds train station left a woman facing months of dental work after she bit into a stone inside it.
Customer Karen Addy, 48, bought the sandwich in the station's branch of Boots for 2.20.
But when she began to eat it, she bit down on a small pebble which had somehow found its way into the snack.
It led to an abscess, a prescription for painkillers and antibiotics, her tooth being removed and difficulty eating before she finally had four dental procedures over a five-month period.
Mrs Addy bought the carrot, hummus, rocket and alfalfa sandwich made by Fresh Naturally Organic in November 2006.
She said: "I was just chewing away when suddenly I felt this obstruction as I bit down. I felt my teeth crunch and then I discovered this stone, like one you would find on the ground.
"I emailed the manufacturer to complain about what happened. Eventually they just said there was nothing they could do about it and Boots gave me a refund but the pain got worse and worse so a couple of weeks later I went to go and see my GP."
Mrs Addy's face began to swell up and she was given painkillers but an abscess soon began to develop.
The tooth had been driven into the gum by the stone and was removed in February 2007.
Another check-up after the tooth was removed revealed she would need titanium implants in her jaw, which had been weakened by the removal of her tooth and the efforts of her teeth to close the gap.
Mrs Addy was advised to seek legal help to claim for the costs of the operations from Fresh Naturally Organic.
They agreed to pay for her treatment in January this year but compensation has yet to be agreed.
Mother-of-two Mrs Addy, who lives with 47-year-old husband Brian in Holmfirth said: "I couldn't afford to pay for it myself so I had to make sure that the money for the operation was taken care of by the company before I went ahead with it.
"Overall I had to have four procedures over the last five months, with a bone graft in February, titanium implants in my jaw in May, an impression of my teeth in June and then an implant in my teeth and a crown earlier this month.
"It has been a really stressful ordeal and it's dragged on for such a long time but I am glad that all of the treatment is finally done.
"I can finally eat apples again, I had completely forgotten what they tasted like and it's a relief to have everything sorted out."
A spokesman for Fresh Naturally Organic said: "We are very sorry that this incident occurred and it is not a normal occurrence.
"All of our products are of a good quality and, as an organic company, we try to go that extra mile but sadly in this case those standards haven't been met."
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Leeds
Friday 25 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 10 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 20 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 8 C to 20 C
Wind Speed: 16 mph
Wind direction: East
