A TAKEAWAY shop in Taunton town centre has been ordered to pay costs of over £2,000 to Somerset Council after being shut down due to a rat infestation.

Zaza’s Chicken House on Station Road was closed after the discovery of a rat infestation serious enough to be a significant risk of contamination of food.

The council served Zaza’s with a Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Notice under the Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013 – Regulation 8, which meant the premises had to immediately stop being used as a food business.

It then applied to the Magistrates’ Court for a Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Order (HEPO) confirming the prohibition, with the defendant ordered to pay costs of £2,027.50 to Somerset Council.

A Somerset Council spokesperson said: “This represented the time spent by Environmental Health Officers investigating, serving the Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Notice (HEPN), and getting it confirmed through the court in a Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Order (HEPO).

“Once the business has resolved the problem they can apply to the authority, in writing for a certificate of satisfaction which, if granted, would allow the premises to be used as a food business again.”