Restaurants have been advised by legal experts that taking deposits at the time of booking, to be forfeited in the event of a “no-show”, may turn the booking into a stronger legal contract that implies a list of responsibilities for both sides. However, taking deposits makes it far more likely that a full legal contract is in existence. This would place extra responsibilities on the restaurateur that are implied under contract law. Under contract law, for example, the restaurant would have an active responsibility to mitigate its losses by trying to sell the no-show’s table to another customer. The industry bible there, The Caterer, previously warned that legal experts said taking a deposit conferred more rights on a consumer under contract law.

Source: The Irish Times December 01, 2018 05:48 UTC