Bizarre new terrace trend: leaving without paying
I genuinely have no idea what possesses people to do this, but according to hospitality entrepreneurs, it is only getting worse: people walking away without paying. Especially in summer, when terraces are busy, these so-called ‘food pirates’ are striking more and more often, Brian Fernandes (from De Waterkant in Amsterdam) tells RTL Nieuws.
And the worst part is: there is nothing you can do about it, except train your staff as well as possible so that they hopefully notice it in time. You cannot insure yourself against it, because once the food pirates in question are gone, you can forget about getting the money back.
Leaving with premeditation
According to Fernandes, these people intend not to pay from the outset, and mainly want a free night out. How does he know? At De Waterkant in Amsterdam, terrace service is self-service, so walking away without paying is not an option. That is why these food pirates always sit inside, where you can order on account — and have it brought to your table.
‘They look completely normal, just like you and me. They behave politely too. But at the end of the evening, when it is time to pay, they have suddenly disappeared. When we review the camera footage, we often see that one person leaves first, followed by the next. Or they leave behind an item of clothing, such as a found jacket or sweater, so that the staff think they have just gone out for a cigarette.’ I personally really do not understand this: they are too stingy to pay, but then they do want to leave something behind that also costs money? Make it make sense.
At least one food pirate per month
‘But as soon as they are out of sight, they start running. I am talking about the people who deliberately run off without paying. There are also customers who forget by accident. They might think the other person has paid, or none of them think of it. But they often come back another day or call to say that they forgot to pay.’
According to Fernandes, this used to happen very sporadically, but by now it happens at least once a month. On average, the bill is around 50 to 60 euros. They do not report it to the police: ‘That is too much hassle. Even if you have footage, it is not a priority for the police. So you spend time filing a report and get nothing in return.’
Let me make it clear that I think it is absolutely incredibly antisocial if you do this deliberately, but honestly: once a month does not strike me as an enormous amount? Of course it is very unpleasant for restaurant owners, and it is absolutely not something that should happen, but if it happens once a month, I still find it manageable. Or perhaps I have simply lost faith in humanity to the point that I automatically assume this happens…
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Source: RTL Nieuws
