No-shows losing restaurants £16bn a year

By Michelle Perrett

- Last updated on GMT

80 per cent of restaurateurs would consider taking pre-paid deposits or holding credit card details to help reduce no-shows
80 per cent of restaurateurs would consider taking pre-paid deposits or holding credit card details to help reduce no-shows
The restaurant industry could be losing out on up to £16bn in revenue every year because people fail to turn up for bookings, according to online reservation system ResDiary.

In the UK, the rate of people not turning up for bookings is estimated anywhere between five and 20 per cent.  

In a flash poll of just under 100 restaurants ResDiary said restaurants are calling out for a solution to protect their businesses and prevent losses. 

In the poll 80 per cent agreed that taking pre-paid deposits or holding credit card details, as a means of reducing no-shows or late cancellations, would be something they would consider implementing.

Currently, 42 per cent said they already take and hold pre-paid deposits while 32 per cent agreed that the majority of guests would understand the need for a deposit or credit card details to be held in case of late cancellation. Of those surveyed 35 per cent agreed that selling paid-in-advance ‘tickets’ would be an accepted way for customers to book seats in a restaurant in the future. 

Hari Farzin, digital & marketing director at ResDiary, said: “No-shows clearly aren’t a new problem for operators, rather they are a well-documented scourge of the hospitality industry. 

“If the industry looked to ticketing as a plausible solution and thereby reduced their no-shows to just 1.5 per cent, it could save up to £15bn a year. It could also improve customer satisfaction, as guests who are keen to book at popular venues will be guaranteeing their arrival.” 

ResDiary has developed an integration with payment provider Stripe Connect, allowing restaurateurs to securely take a customer’s credit card within the booking process for both online and internal reservations.

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