Paying off Tabs in restaurants

dandowftm

Hi all,

Last week my partner and I went for tea at one of the two for one chains. When we can to pay off the tab the price they quoted was roughly £13, when it should have been double that. We happily paid and quickly lef the pub.

This morning I have checked my online banking to find that Spirit Pubs has charged my card the remaining £13.79. After a bit of digging around I found out that Spirit Pubs are in charge of the Two for One chain.

My question, Are they allowed to charge me for that. Surely the price they quoted me is the price I should pay and then cant then charge my card without my authorisation?

Thanks in advance

Dandowftm

gregg1

dandowftm wrote: »

Hi all,

Last week my partner and I went for tea at one of the two for one chains. When we can to pay off the tab the price they quoted was roughly £13, when it should have been double that. We happily paid and quickly lef the pub.

This morning I have checked my online banking to find that Spirit Pubs has charged my card the remaining £13.79. After a bit of digging around I found out that Spirit Pubs are in charge of the Two for One chain.

My question, Are they allowed to charge me for that. Surely the price they quoted me is the price I should pay and then cant then charge my card without my authorisation?



Thanks in advance

Dandowftm

So you were charged the correct amount for what you had consumed?

Is this a wind up ?

dandowftm

yes, but they mistakenly charged me less originally, then re-charged my card without my authorisation a week later. Like i said should I not only have to pay the price they quoted me?

gregg1

dandowftm wrote: »

yes, but they mistakenly charged me less originally, then re-charged my card without my authorisation a week later. Like i said should I not only have to pay the price they quoted me?

And what if they had mistakenly charged you extra and you had not noticed? Would you not ask for the money back?

dandowftm

good point, i look silly now don't I

cleo1299

I think it's disgusting that you "quickly left" knowing you had been under-charged.

But at the same time, the restaurant should not be holding on to customers' card details and making charges without authorization in order to correct mistakes.

Here's hoping that if you take the restaurant to court for charging your card without authorization, they will enter a counter-claim against you for knowingly under-paying, and both of you will end up out of pocket, and next time you will not try to take advantage of an underpaid waiter's mistake and the restaurant will know better than to hang on to customers' card details.

bryanb

How did they get your Pin No for the second transaction?

DrScotsman

Okay, two things here.

1. Before you were charged for the second time, is this situation any different to the one where a guy bought a camera from Curry's for £200, and then they realised that they should have charged him £400? I don't think it is any different. Just like they said "It's £200 for the camera, pay up", you got "It's £13 for the bill, pay up" which you did.
2. They should DEFINITELY not have charged you the remainder without your authorisation, that has got to be against a LOT of rules. I don't know who you should complain to first about that, maybe the bank.

While a lot of people would say it's morally wrong what you did (to which I do agree with them to an extent), I think them illegally charging the remainder to you is appalling. Your decision as to whether or not two wrongs make a right.

Mark_Hewitt

DrScotsman wrote: »

2. They should DEFINITELY not have charged you the remainder without your authorisation, that has got to be against a LOT of rules.

Yes, commonly referred to as "the law". What they did was definitely illegal. Morally correct, but not legally so.

pinkshoes

The company were not permitted to charge you the second amount without your authorisation, but as you were equally dishonest, knowing full well they'd undercharged you, I'd let it go on this occasion.

bryanb

I still want to know how they got Pin No for second transaction.