Dine and dash is getting out of control and destroying businesses - but there's an easy way we can stop it

13 May 2024, 08:40

By Johnny Jenkins

@johnnyljenkins

Dining and dashing is a worrying new trend which is destroying British businesses - here’s a simple solution to the crisis.

Call me old fashioned, but when I visit a restaurant I pay the bill.

I’m an expert in the universal hand signal for requesting the cheque - pretend you are holding a pen and wiggle your hand at the waiter, while mouthing ‘the bill, please’.

I thought everyone did this slightly embarrassing dad-like routine, but there’s plenty of Brits who need to learn how to pay the bill.

A Welsh couple admitted last week to dining and dashing over £1,000 from five restaurants. Approached outside court, the pair covered their faces and refused to answer questions.

Restaurant owners Giovan Cangelosi and Domenica Perico said the family ordered expensive T-bone steaks and double portions of pudding - their bill, which they refused to pay, came to £329.

Perico, who owns Bella Ciao restaurant in Swansea, described the theft as ‘completely destroying’.

She says that since a video of the incident went viral online, they’ve had messages of support ‘from all over the world’.

It’s heartbreaking to hear the impact on this family-run business.

Let me take you from Swansea to Glasgow. I was in the central George Square for a lunchtime meal last week - seeing as the weather was nice, we sat outside.

I ordered lasagne and a (large) glass of wine. The waiter brought the bill as soon as we had ordered and we paid up before my Malbec had even arrived.

At first, I thought this was strange. Why doesn’t the waiter trust me and my friends? Do I look like a thief?

But then I realised that this business has cracked it - this is the solution to the dine-and-dash trend.

All restaurants should bring the receipt before the food arrives. Paying the bill upfront may be a small inconvenience for us, but it’s a simple solution to a growing problem.

This change would bring an end to the dine-and-dash crisis. It makes sure that the debts are settled from the very start of the meal. It’ll take some getting used to, but it’ll save businesses thousands of pounds in lost revenue.

Our hospitality sector is under a lot of pressure at the moment - rising energy bills are crippling restaurants and the knock-on effect of the pandemic is still impacting balance sheets.

Stealing from restaurants is unacceptable and not fair on businesses. It’s got to stop.

Forcing customers to pay the bill upfront would bring an end to the dine-and-dash crisis.

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