Damages for missed bookings

Some people have a very poor attitude towards bookings in a pub.

They think that because it is not a "proper" restaurant, they do not have to worry about not turning up. The landlord just has to grin and bear it.

But that is just not true. It is now fairly well established that a proprietor may pursue a claim for damages for breach of contract in the small claims court. If you are suffering from people who book and then fail to appear, even though you have reserved them a table, then you can take heart.

For a contract to be valid and binding on the parties, there is no requirement that it should be written down. All that is required is an offer and an acceptance, in the first instance.

A telephone booking to a pub restaurant is just such a form of contract. The customer, in fact, makes the offer of the contract, and the licensee or his agent accepts by confirming the reservation. Thereafter, there is in existence a valid legal contract, which may be held to be binding on both parties.

From the point of view of the pub owner, legal action is only likely when he or she has suffered a specified loss. If a customer cancels on a busy night, and the licensee immediately fills the available space with other customers, there can be no real grounds for action.

If, on the other hand, the licensee holds a table in reserve for a party in the middle of a busy Saturday evening, and turns people away from the restaurant because of the reservation, there is clearly a loss if the booked party fails to turn up and fails to make contact.

In accordance with the contract, the licensee has made the table available, as he or she is obliged to do, and allowed a reasonable time for the party's arrival (they could justifiably complain if the table had been given to someone else, unless prompt arrival had been made a main condition of the contract, which it rarely is). Failure to attend or communicate with the licensee is a breach of the contract, and an action for damages can be taken.

In a recent case, a restaurant owner sent a bill for her estimated damages: loss of profit from the table concerned, and something in respect of raw materials or prepared dishes. This was accepted by the court, and she was eventually paid.