A British restaurateur has warned his colleagues to be vigilant after he caught a customer sticking a hair in her food to get a refund as he watched on security cameras.
“I was disgusted and angry – really angry. “There are people who are willing to risk a company’s reputation and the jobs of its employees for a £12.95 meal,” said Tom Croft, the owner of The Observatory pub in Blackburn, according to The Mirror” last Thursday.
Last week, the 32-year-old owner had to issue a refund for a roast beef dish worth £12.95, the equivalent of about $22, after a customer “caused a ruckus” at the pub after a hair was found on his wife’s plate was.
However, after returning the full amount to the court, Tom Croft decided to look at the images from his pub’s surveillance cameras to make sure that all his employees had their hair tied up, the British media continued.
He allegedly came across the images showing the woman leaning over to whisper something in her partner’s ear before taking one of her hairs and placing it on his plate.
“We have never seen anything like this before. If we hadn’t found the CCTV footage, our reputation would be a big problem. “People don’t want to eat in places where there’s hair in the food,” complained the owner, who has lived in the restaurant for five years.
The latter also wants to warn other companies to remain vigilant against unscrupulous individuals who could try “similar” methods to leave without paying.
“You have to keep your eyes open,” he stressed, according to The Mirror.