Or Should I go back and pay ?

[feelinglost02]

Realised from reading the other post about the lady who walked out of the restaurant without paying that I may have done something similar but interested in opinions. I took my young daughter for a trim. I'd already asked the cost on the phone and she said £10. I specifically told the hairdresser before she started she still needed to be able to tie it up in a bun for ballet. I literally looked away for a second and she had an ear length bob. Daughter had curly hair midway down her back originally so it then sprang up more. I said to the hairdresser I'm not sure how I'm going to get that in a bun, she then attempted it herself and agreed it wouldn't go even go into a ponytail. Dd was a bit upset and I was panicking slightly as dd is a nightmare about her hair. Didn't want to make dd more upset so tried to be positive and went to the desk to pay. Hairdresser said they didn't have a card machine so I said I'd go to atm. Whilst walking to atm dd starts crying, I'm getting more angry at the hair cock up and inwardly cursing hairdresser. I get money out of atm, walk back to the shop and find it closed. We go past this shop frequently but I've never bothered to go back in and pay. My instinct when I read the previous post about the restaurant was that she should have paid but given my own actions perhaps I'm being a hypocrite?

It’s over now, in fact it’s so long ago I bet the hair goes in a bin now. Sleep easy one of those things and out it down to experience and never leave a hairdresser unattended with scissors in hand!

Your "looking away for a second" must be very different to the rest of us's perception of time.

But if this was in August the moment has long passed. Unless you're intending to go back there for more haircuts.

I also think they closed very quickly because they were embarrassed at what they’d done to your DD’s hair, and didn’t know how to handle the situation.

This a thousand times over. Don't give it another thought apart from remembering never to go there again if you don't want all your hair hacked off.

I mean this whole thing is pretty weird. To be honest I would not have paid anyway given the circumstances that they completely screwed up, so I find it odd that you would have agreed to pay.

Odd also that they closed so quickly if they were expecting you back, or wouldn't have mentioned they were about to close. I suspect they thought you weren't coming back and were happy to write off the money knowing they'd cocked up and they were probably expecting a complaint anyway.

Anyway, I would let it go. This really is a non issue. You didn't get what you'd asked for, so no payment should have been due.

Those of you picking up on me looking away for one second obviously that wasn't a totally accurate comment. It's something people say! She'd cut the side away from me so I didn't see immediately what she'd done. Once I saw how short it was on that side what can you do? You can't stand over a hairdresser. I thought I'd been clear. The shop was one of those that was above another shop. I went back and it was 5 mins later and they had locked the door and put the close sign up. I couldn't see if anyone was there because they'd have been up two flights of stairs

You shouldn't have to pay for a haircut you're not happy with that was so far from what you asked for, however, this should have been made clear with the hairdresser and discussed at the time.

I am thinking curiouser and curiouser with this thread.

Firstly I agree hair stylists can get it wrong but they do not just take one long sweep with the scissors and cut off several inches in one go. They section it and the parent should be watching so can easily say stop please that is too much. For that alone I am doubtful the OP is telling us the entire truth.

(The only time a hairstylist will cut off a huge amount in one go is if the customer asks for "very long to very short please" and the ponytail is chopped off before further styling but this is not what the OP is telling us was her request)

If she asked the stylist to make sure even a tiny pony tail could still be made after cutting then she should have ensured the stylist heard and understood. She must have looked away for a lot more than a second for it all to be chopped off.

Very odd story.

"It’s over now, in fact it’s so long ago I bet the hair goes in a bin now."

Sorry, but I'm puzzling over this comment. I can't work out what it means at all.

Thedy get scissor happy as i call it-whnever i get my hair cut i say less then i want because i know tghey start chopping away i know its like art for them but just give people what they want

@Daffodil55 I just explained how it came about and hairdressers can be very scissor happy. I have my hair done without fail every six weeks and because I've moved around a lot I've seen a lot of different mistakes been made. I was watching but I was sitting on the other side and was aghast that someone would take so much off a little girls relatively long hair. I'm not a liar

The reason I didn't make a fuss at the till and would have paid was because I didn't want dd to get upset and think I hated her hair. £10 I would have paid to not upset my dd

Your post about sitting on the other side was done while I was typing so I did not see it until after I submitted mine.

You didn't look away then, you were not in view of what she was doing at all on that other side.

If it all happened just as you say, and I am not here to be nasty to you, I am just responding to what you have written, then it is indeed unfortunate and if the stylist knew full well you wanted enough length to still put the hair up for ballet lessons then I am in full agreement you should not have paid.

However if you had made a calm complaint after the cut when you realised the stylist had ignored your wishes, I think they would have apologised and written off the fee, or at least given you a big discount.

I assume you can now get a little ponytail in your daughter's hair so put it all down to experience and go to a different stylist next time.

There are a lot of martyrs on this and the other thread.

If a business has given a terrible service or product, they shouldn’t be paid. If they can’t provide food that’s edible, or give terrible haircuts that go against the instructions of the customer, then they don’t deserve to be in business.

You don't have to pay if you're not satisfied with the service but you should have made it clear that was what was happening.

It was five months ago, I really wouldn’t bother. I’m imagining your DD’s hair has now grown enough to go into a bun again, that’s how much time has passed. I’m sure they have forgotten.

Definitely way too late now.

"It’s over now, in fact it’s so long ago I bet the hair goes in a bin now."

Sorry, but I'm puzzling over this comment. I can't work out what it means at all.

I think she means bun not bin, ie the hair has grown back by now

No leave it now, but use another hairdresser

Why should she pay when she didn't receive what she wanted and they massively cocked it up?

If you don't like the haircut, you make it clear at the time. You don't just walk away and not pay.

The hairdresser didn't do what you asked for. You do not commit to providing a specific service and not provide it. Not providing the accurate service does not warrant payment.

I am a bit perplexed at the shop shutting so quickly. Maybe the hairdresser who did the haircut shut the shop quickly so that you didn't come back and argue about payment, therefore making their colleagues aware of what they'd done.

You didn't not pay. You went away to get money and it was closed when you returned. Unless you took a long time to return, it's their fault.

Having said that, and totally unrelated to the issue at hand, you could have checked earlier if they had a card machine so that you knew you'd be able to pay before going in. The ATM could have been off.

I'd forget about it now. They put up the shutters knowing that there was another tenner to go in the till. If they couldn't be bothered to wait then it's their look-out. Two wrongs don't make a right but don't worry about it now. Never darken their door again.

In any case, I would not pay if I had asked for a long cut (for a bun) and got a bob instead. I'm sure it's fine for ballet, with a hair band, but it's not what you asked for.

OP - this is very different to the other post you'll be pleased to hear!

They know where you are and have your contact details and closed before you could get back to give them the cash.

I suspect they did not want the awkward conversation about the hair cut and have left it, too.

In this scenario, the hairdresser probably should have said she wouldn't charge you as you weren't pleased. Perhaps she was junior and didn't think of it immediately or a senior stylist told her she shouldn't charge after you left. I imagine they thought you would return and complain about the haircut and make a fuss and they were a bit cowardly and couldn't face it, so closed to avoid it, knowing they wouldn't get the £10 but would avoid a confrontation.

Probably cowardly on their part.
On your part, rude not to make contact in the coming days - yes, youndontnexoect tonpay full price for poor service, BUT that is after discussion, not just a decision to be taken by yourself.

You should have phoned or emailed them to say they were closed when you returned but you'd like to discuss the disappointing haircut. At that point they would probably tell you not to pay - fine, and same outcome regarding money, but the right route to the outcome because BOTH of you would have been involved in the decision.

Given its now 4-5 months the moment has passed. Gettingninntouch now would be odd. If would just acknowledge to yourself that while their haircut was crap, your response to the closed shop wasn't good and decide you wouldn't do the same again. Decide that and move on.