Customers plan to snub longer hours

Nearly half of pub customers will continue to go home at the normal 11pm closing time - even if they are drinking in a pub that opens longer.That's...

Nearly half of pub customers will continue to go home at the normal 11pm closing time - even if they are drinking in a pub that opens longer.

That's according to the results of a new on-line survey, carried out by research analysts OMD UK, which asked more than 1,000 pub-goers: "If pubs were open until as late as midnight or 1am, would you stay in the pub until it closed?"

Almost half (49 per cent) said they wouldn't whereas 34 per cent said they would, but only if it was a Friday or a Saturday night.

But nearly a fifth (17 per cent) said if the Licensing Bill is passed, which will allow for extensions of pub opening times, they would stay and order more drinks whatever day of the week it was.

Mark Hastings, spokesman for the British Beer and Pub Association, said: "If you look at it positively the survey says that half of customers will stay longer in the pub if they are allowed to open later than 11pm. This is surely good news for licensees.

"A pub may choose to open from 9pm until 3am rather than 11am until 11pm.

"People may choose to go out later and live their social lives as they want. The whole point of licensing reform is to give everyone greater flexibility."

Stephanie Collins, spokesperson for OMD UK, agreed. "I think it's good news for pubs. It shows that if they open later licensees are going to get extra business."

The survey showed that out of all the age groups, the 18 to 24-year-old bracket said they were most likely to buy more drinks if pub opening hours were extended.

The poll mirrors the results of The Publican Newspaper/ Britvic Soft Drinks Pub-Goers Survey from last year.

This found that 18 per cent of customers would go to the pub more if they were open longer and 35 per cent said they would spend more time there.

Survey results

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