To be cross at Costa coffee not letting me go to the loo?

[Treatedlikeamaid]

I think of all the money I’ve spent in Costa and just now I nipped into a branch, it was empty. I asked if I could use the loo and the young man serving told me not if I wasn’t going to buy anything. I mean..it was empty! I’ve spent 100s in there over the years. ! I’m a lady of a certain age when we need the loo, we need the loo! I’m irrationally angry and then got all embarrassed and tearful. Not pleasant at all. It wouldn’t have cost Costa anything to show a bit of consideration. Humph!

Nice dodge @IcedPurple. In other words, you expect the fairies to provide public loos.

20p per use will over the building costs?? 🤣🤣🤣.
Over the course of 50 years, maybe...

@VinylDetective

Nice dodge *@IcedPurple*. In other words, you expect the fairies to provide public loos.

How is it a dodge? Yes, councils should be providing public toilets. I already said that - several times in fact.

But in their absence, it's not the role of private businesses to fill the gap, at their own expense and inconvenience, as well as that of their paying customers. How about all those who feel so strongly about this issue get together to form a 'free to pee' group, displaying stickers on their windows indicating that every passing man or woman is free to enter their home for a piss or a shit?

Those are questions which will depend on the individual council and their budget. It would also be possible to build toilets which are accessible for a token fee - say 20p a pee - which should cover costs and discourage frivilous use.

Yeah. And if I remember correctly there was a bill to make them extempt from business rates to help councils managing them financially. I think it passed, but can't remember 100%

@JuliaJohnston

20p per use will over the building costs?? 🤣🤣🤣. Over the course of 50 years, maybe...

Considering how many people appear to need them, might be considerably faster

Considering how many people appear to need them, might be considerably faster

Yep. According to posters here, it's quite common to be desperate for a wee 4 times an hour, or will feel they have no option but to shit in the streets if that nasty minimum wage man from Costa said no.

I haven't RTFT but I cannot believe how entitled you are!

@eckhart I'm not sure if you've heard of ibs but trust me when I say there ain't no time to buy a coffee, love,

@turnthebiglightoff

I have IBS, so there's no need to be so patronising. I don't use private toilets without the permission of the owner, and will buy something if I need to be a customer to use the loo. Sometimes before I go, if i have time, and sometimes after, if I don't.

Generally where there's a Costa there's a supermarket nearby, so I use the toilets there, and can buy something I need rather than a frivolous coffee or cake that I don't need.

I'm not sure if you've heard of private property, but trust me, you ain't got no right to be shitting in it without the owners, permission, love. Why do you think you do?

People on this thread are talking as if Costa are meant to be providing some sort of toileting emergency service. It's a coffee shop with toilets for customers only. Have people never seen this before? Have we got people from Mars on the thread or something?

How is it a dodge?

Because I asked you which services you’d like to see cut to pay for them. Or alternatively how much more council tax you’d be prepared to pay. You haven’t answered either question.

@VinylDetective

How is it a dodge?

Because I asked you which services you’d like to see cut to pay for them. Or alternatively how much more council tax you’d be prepared to pay. You haven’t answered either question.

And I answered. The questions are meaningless without a) having my local council's annual budget to hand and b) because it's irrelevant to the current discussion, which is about whether or not private businesses are obliged to allow random non-customers to use their toilets, not what councils should do with their money.

If you believe Costa is obliged to provide pissing services to the public in the absence of sufficient publicly funded facilities, then I guess you also think hotels should provide free rooms because there aren't enough homeless shelters and that restaurants are obliged to provide food for free because there aren't enough food banks.

Do you provide free pissing and shitting services in your own private property? Assuming the answer is no, why should cafes be obliged to do otherwise?

OK 🤷‍♀️ So, the fairies.

Bet you that businesses in general would have no issues with non customers using their toilets commonly if people weren't such freaking pigs😐 That was really our only problem.

Oh! And had at least a tiny bit of respect to other's property.

VinylDetective
They've repeatedly responded to your points and yet you're still going on about fairies.
🙄

Why is it the responsibility of private businesses to provide free toilets?
Why should customers of private businesses be paying for other people to use the services offered by the business?

I'd happily pay towards a council service but don't see why I should pay more in a cafe and have a longer wait for potentially grottier loos because other people think it's their right to have access to every toilet on town.

Set aside council toilets, what it seems to come down to is whether you think:
A) Customers pay for a business and get access to the business facilities
Or
B) Customers should pay for the facilities and also cover all the additional costs of entitled people who think others should pay so they can have free toilet access on demand. Aka "paying isn't for me, you lot should pay because I want everything free when I want it".

The 'a bit of loo roll' comment...

I once worked within a large, fairly well-known UK arts attraction that did not charge to visit and had a café, and a good selection of free toilets on its various floors. At the time there was a rather thankless and ambitious fundraising campaign for several million to give the building and displays the biggest overhaul in their history to date. It was pretty much a full time job of the fundraising office to keep going until such time as the project was funded, therefore as long as a piece of string.

The toilets and utilities - basically, keeping the lights on, the hand dryers working, the loo roll in store, for this great new facility, were not included in this overall amount. There was another yearly fund to fundraise where these costs were concerned, mostly coming from grants deriving from public and government money, not grand gestures with shiny plaques attached. Still, it was about the most difficult and unsexy thing to get any funds for at all. The amounts were shockingly little despite all the effort of a well-paid team. So if you do want public money to see its way to some Shanks and Armitage porcelain, please put your voice behind it and don't assume the costs are as minimal as you'd think.

if you do want public money to see its way to some Shanks and Armitage porcelain, please put your voice behind it and don't assume the costs are as minimal as you'd think

Exactly that. And no @LolaSmiles, my questions weren’t answered as you’d see if you’d read the thread.

@eckhart you seem very angry. I'd maybe think about calming down; stress sets off IBS. I very much agree with the OP. If you're a regular customer, you should have the right to use the toilet. Most supermarkets (I work in retail and visit a lot of shops) have their toilets closed at the moment. If you've got to go, you've got to go. I'd buy a drink or snack whenever I can; sometimes there just isn't time. Having been pregnant, I would also absolutely challenge any premises with a loo if I'd been refused to use it.

[quote turnthebiglightoff]@eckhart you seem very angry. I'd maybe think about calming down; stress sets off IBS. I very much agree with the OP. If you're a regular customer, you should have the right to use the toilet. Most supermarkets (I work in retail and visit a lot of shops) have their toilets closed at the moment. If you've got to go, you've got to go. I'd buy a drink or snack whenever I can; sometimes there just isn't time. Having been pregnant, I would also absolutely challenge any premises with a loo if I'd been refused to use it. [/quote]
Why can't supermarkets open it but Costa has to?

Supermarkets in this neck of the woods have opened their loos. With no compulsion to buy anything either.

Having been pregnant, I would also absolutely challenge any premises with a loo if I'd been refused to use it.

turnthebiglightoff Challenge away. If the answer is no, the answer is still no.

If you're a regular customer, you should have the right to use the toilet.

It's not a question of 'rights'. It's a question of what the cafe's policy is. If they say you have to buy something there and then in order to use the toilets (as most do) that's up to them.

Besides, how can you prove that you're a 'regular customer'? Did the OP offer any such proof?

Having been pregnant, I would also absolutely challenge any premises with a loo if I'd been refused to use it.

Being pregnant doesn't give you special 'rights' in this regard either.

I Have IBS so am aware of where every loo is on my high street. Often I rush in first and say "I'll get something in a minute". Then pick up a snack or bottle of water (coz otherwise I'll need to go again!)

If it helps, cafe Nero have little chocs you can buy @ 40p each.

I have occaisionally not bought something but have asked if I can use them

Over semi lock down Gails refused me the use even if I bought something due to covid that was not a good day.

@turnthebiglightoff

eckhart you seem very angry. I'd maybe think about calming down; stress sets off IBS

My post wasn't an angry one. You're tagging me just to patronise me. Unpleasant of you, and unnecessary. But, you know, whatever floats your boat. Don't tag me again, please.

Having been pregnant, I would also absolutely challenge any premises with a loo if I'd been refused to use it.

Challenge them and say what?