Chorlton bar and restaurant The Laundrette has hit out at a customer who left it a 1-star review on TripAdvisor, despite not turning up for her booking.
The customer, who was unhappy at being charged a £60 ‘no-show’ fee after she ‘forgot’ to cancel her booking at the busy eatery over Christmas, made her feelings known on the public review site in a long rant.
Revealing that she also works in the hospitality industry and ‘understand it’s their policy to debit a table that hasn’t shown up, and they were just following procedure’, she went on to say that she still felt she should be issued a refund.
After her card was debited, she had emailed the restaurant to ‘explain the circumstances’ and after twelve days had still not heard back on her request – leading her to take to TripAdvisor to make her feelings known more publicly.
Image: The Laundrette, Chorlton
The customer, going under the name Lauren B, said that she works in an independent restaurant in Chorlton and had booked a family meal at The Laundrette on 30 December 2021 in advance.
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On the day, however, she says a couple of her family members were taken ill with Covid and she herself was being asked to go into work to cover for her head chef, who had also tested positive with the virus.
Saying that she ‘may have forgotten to cancel’, she goes on to appeal for some sort of solidarity in her bid for a refund, making comparisons with her own workplace saying: “At my restaurant we wouldn’t just bill the card payer and not display any sympathy to the circumstances.
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“It’s unprecedented times for everyone at the moment, but especially the hospitality industry, and I know that we have barely made it through this festive period due to staff constantly isolating, tables no-showing, bringing front of house staff into the kitchen to cover in emergency circumstances.
“But I would like to think that despite these uncertain times, local businesses still appreciate human error and genuine mistakes.”
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She also implied that the Laundrette didn’t need to charge her for the no-show as she ‘can see out my window [they] are constantly flipping tables.’
The restaurant has since replied, saying: “Your table sat completely empty for 2 hours on a day we were fully booked.
“This is why you were charged.”
Taking aim at the unhappy customer, it went on to say that as a hospitality worker herself she ‘should know way more than most how detrimental tables not showing up is for a small businesses.’
The post continued: “And on top of that you then seem to think it’s acceptable to leave a bad review on trip advisor despite knowing you are 100% in the wrong.
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Image: The Laundrette, Chorlton
“We make it extreamly easy to cancel bookings. You can do it online yourself. You can message us on any social media platform. You can call us.
“As you live on the road you could have easily just mentioned it to any of our staff while walking past.
“Unfortunately you didn’t bother doing any of these.”
Adding that ‘we hate charging no shows but it’s the only way to protect ourselves’ the restaurant’s public relations manager finished by inviting her to give him a call, but not before delivering one more blow.
“Normally we are absolutely demoralised by negative reviews but… I’m more than happy for this to stay up and be public so everyone can see.
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“Not showing up for restaurant bookings is an extremely rude and disgusting practice.
“It’s the only reason we have put our charging system in place.”
The Council is giving Mancs £2,500 to move into a ‘more manageable’ home
Emily Sergeant
The Council is now offering financial help to support people moving into a smaller and ‘more manageable’ property.
Ever heard of ‘rightsizing? Well, according Manchester City Council it’s a process where a tenant in a larger social rent, Council, or Housing Association property, that may have more rooms than they need or perhaps are struggling to manage a big house as they get older, can be supported into a smaller property that better suits their needs.
The benefits of this process include cheaper bills, lower rents, and overall, just homes that are easier to clean and manage.
The aim of it is also to free up larger Council properties for families who are on the housing register – of which there are said to be around 20,000 of them currently at this time, with larger homes having some of the most significant wait times.
Are you struggling to look after a big Council or housing association home? We can help!
We are offering £2,500 to help people move into a smaller more manageable home, freeing up larger homes for families that need them.
It’s also estimated, according to the Council, that a third of all social rented family homes are thought to ‘underoccupied’.
This is why financial support and grants are now being offered.
Last year alone, 109 households were helped to ‘rightsize’ and were supported in the process by a dedicated team of Council officers, as well as benefitting from the Rightsizing Incentive Scheme – with a further 432 households having expressed interest doing so in the future.
Residents interested in ‘rightsizing’ could get a cash incentive of £2,500, which can be spent on anything they like, along with moving costs.
The Council is giving Mancs £2,500 to move into a ‘more manageable’ home / Credit: Benjamin Elliott (via Unsplash)
“Rightsizing could be a brilliant option for older people who are renting a Council home who may have spare rooms they don’t need or would benefit from looking after a smaller property,” explained Cllr Gavin White, who is Manchester City Council’s Executive Member for Housing and Development.
“Often a barrier to moving is the cost, but the Council will take care of the financial burden to help a resident move into a new home.
“The benefit for the city is that we can free up more larger homes for people who are waiting for a property that properly meets their needs. We think around a third of Council tenants could be under occupying their home, which means they could be paying more than they need to or they could be hit with the bedroom tax.”
Does this sound like you? Are you ready to ‘rightsize’? Find out more and begin the process via Manchester City Council’s website here.
Featured Image – Vitaly Gariev (via Unsplash)
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Trailer released for Netflix’s new Lucy Letby documentary with ‘unprecedented access’
Emily Sergeant
The trailer for Netflix’s new documentary about the investigation of Lucy Letby has been released.
The feature-length film about Lucy Letby – the infamous neonatal nurse who was found guilty of murdering seven babies and attempting to murder seven others under her care at the Countess of Chester Hospital – hears for the first time from the police officers who investigated the case that shook the nation.
It features never-before-seen footage of Letby during her arrests and police questioning, and even includes interviews with experts and lawyers on both sides, as well as with the hospital consultants who initially raised the alarm.
Tragically, it also includes an anonymised interview with a mother of one of the victims, who also speaks for the first time about her experience and involvement in Letby’s trial.
Produced as a result of years of research and relationship-building, the film – simply titled The Investigation of Lucy Letby – is described as being the most ‘comprehensive’ look at one of Britain’s most notorious crimes, and traces developments from her arrest to trial in chronological order.
Viewers will be given ‘unparalleled and exclusive access’ to those central to the story.
“This was an exceptional and demanding project, marked by significant creative and ethical responsibility,” commented director, Dominic Sivyer. “Our aim was to craft a powerful, emotionally resonant depiction of the events surrounding the case.”
Caroline Short, Head of Global TV at ITN Productions – who produced the documentary – added: “The access to all our contributors came with a huge responsibility to present everyone’s perspectives with care and understanding.
“We are grateful to all those people who trusted us to tell their story.”
Georgina Pellant -
18th January 2022 
