Had to cancel hairdressers appt because I tested positive... they are trying to charge me

[MyWeddingFund]

Had a hairdressers appointment for today. Had symptoms yesterday and test which came back positive. I phoned the hairdressers to let them know I had tested positive and would not be attending and would call to rearrange when feeling better as didn't know when that would be I didn't want to rearrange right now. They told me because it is short notice...I have to pay half the price of the service. Fair enough if I had to just cancelled but there is no way I can go

Hairdressers suffered enormously during the original lockdown and were forcibly closed for months.

And they're able to make up for it now as people go for overdue haircuts, dyes, etc. So they're not short of customers at this time, a few of them (I've heard) have so much business they are booked out for a week+. Can't even get a walk-in at the moment.

They're not going short of customers.

@KaptainKaveman

I think there is a very nasty view being peddled on this thread; the view that it is perfectly OK to cancel something last minute and not care about the loss of earnings that means for the hairdresser (or whoever it is).

People are triumphantly cheering about the fact that 'you can't be forced to pay them' and that if you 'choose to be self employed that's the risk you take'. No doubt those people really approve of zero hours contracts and companies like Uber too.

Hairdressers suffered enormously during the original lockdown and were forcibly closed for months. Now is seems some of you are competing to see how much more you can screw them over.

Talk about a rant....

Kalula sounds unhinged. I don’t mean that in a jokey way, the ranting is actually worrying.

@NoSquirrels

You’re a bit angry about pensioners bring fleeced and what-not. Not all business owners are crooks and robbers. Calm down.

Oh, so it's ok for business owners to complain about not getting money for a service rendered, but, it's not ok for a poster to give the consumer's point of view? Such double standards. Last I checked, business owners weren't the only ones allowed to post, despite a few of you attempting to silence dissent.

Kalula, Did you honestly trawl my posts to find a comment that you could say 'calm down' to? That's so funny! And clearly it was a bit of a stretch for you.

Personally, I don't need to worry about cancellation fees, so I'm not as emotionally invested in this as you seen to think I am.

But you are certainly livening up a thread that was just about done, so do carry on!

@Kalula

Hairdressers suffered enormously during the original lockdown and were forcibly closed for months.

And they're able to make up for it now as people go for overdue haircuts, dyes, etc. So they're not short of customers at this time, a few of them (I've heard) have so much business they are booked out for a week+. Can't even get a walk-in at the moment.

They're not going short of customers.

Think about it for a minute. They can’t do walk-ins because of Covid. So if someone cancels last minute, they can’t fill that time slot. They lose money. They’re booked up for weeks because they can’t take as many clients.

Apply some critical thinking skills and then tell me about your opinion as a customer being valid.

At the risk of being labelled 'unhinged' or 'over-invested' for replying to yet another post, I forgot this.

@AdoreTheBeach And hair dresser cancelling because they had symptoms, meant the hair salon were out of their wages because they couldn’t work. So for your “argument” - what are you trying to say? That it is not ok for the hairdresser to cancel because they had carona symptoms? That was the responsible thing to do AND they lost out their earnings for the day.

Why is it that people can consider the hair dresser's side, but not the consumer? What if the consumer took the afternoon off to get to the appointment? Perhaps wasn't paid for that afternoon off? The customer has lost an afternoon's wage because they left early for an appointment that the hairdresser cancelled. Can you really not see that customers often take time off/pre-arrange sitters etc for an appointment? Did that not occur to you? An example is tradespeople who never turn up, how many times have we read on here of someone taking the day off and the tradesman never showed? That's just an example.

@ThisIsntMeHonestGuv

Kalula, Did you honestly trawl my posts to find a comment that you could say 'calm down' to? That's so funny! And clearly it was a bit of a stretch for you.

Personally, I don't need to worry about cancellation fees, so I'm not as emotionally invested in this as you seen to think I am.

But you are certainly livening up a thread that was just about done, so do carry on!

No, I didn't, I simply replied to it as I came to it.

@NoSquirrels They can still do walk ins. They are limited in some respects, yes, but there is only so many you can fit in a salon at the one time anyway, so the changes haven't affected them that much.

I don’t know of any hairdresser that’s doing walk-ins at the moment. I wouldn’t fancy going to a salon that was, quite honestly.

The changes have affected them massively but clearly you don’t think so and know ALLLLL about it so carry on being righteous and sure.

I've seen policies like this and always think that there is no way that I would pay. I'm surprised anyone does really although it perhaps depends on how dependent you are on a particular hairdresser. I would be happy to just go somewhere else. Unless it's a Saturday, I doubt that they are full all day anyway so it's a bit cheeky to try and charge.

I don't believe you. Nobody rational would read 'and I wasn't' and think 'ooh she needs to calm down a bit. What a rant!' unless they were looking to twist the words.

Hope you are okay. You seem a little uptight. But as we've seen from that response, it's not always possible to judge intent from words on a screen. And maybe you are just having a little fun trying to wind people up.

@NoSquirrels

I don’t know of any hairdresser that’s doing walk-ins at the moment. I wouldn’t fancy going to a salon that was, quite honestly.

The changes have affected them massively but clearly you don’t think so and know ALLLLL about it so carry on being righteous and sure.

Well where I am the hairdressers are all still doing walk-ins (If they are able to fit them in). There are signs as there are outside takeaway stores and other shops about a maximum of so many customers allowed on the premises at the same time (it varies due to space - our local Thai takeaway has maximum of 2 customers for picking up takeaway only, no dine-in), Dine-in/takeaway chippy it's maximum of 10 at one time, etc. So it varies due to square metres.

It would be different if I was righteous and sure that the hairdressers could charge this fee, I suppose. That would be ok.

Wow! You paid?!

I would have just said, unless you're complying, I'm cancelling and then just gone...

Different attitudes I guess.

For the OP... As you already had warned her the previous day... You weren't being at all unreasonable... Nope I wouldn't pay.

@ThisIsntMeHonestGuv

I don't believe you. Nobody rational would read 'and I wasn't' and think 'ooh she needs to calm down a bit. What a rant!' unless they were looking to twist the words.

Hope you are okay. You seem a little uptight. But as we've seen from that response, it's not always possible to judge intent from words on a screen. And maybe you are just having a little fun trying to wind people up.

Are you always highly strung and look for an argument? I was reading posts in chronological order. I read one where you told me to calm down (while ignoring rants of posters that supported your opinion) and replied. I kept reading and replying, and I saw you attempting to have the last word with someone else, and thought "and they told me to calm down, hypocritical", so replied.

Nothing other than that, no conspiracy there. Just you seeming to be looking for an argument with another poster.

If it was a hairdresser I used a lot I would pay half, or a token amount.

I think hairdressers are really struggling and I wouldn’t want them to go without any financial compensation.

I wouldn't pay. I may have offered when cancelling but they shouldn't have asked you to pay. They either want people to cancel when they have coronavirus or they don't. Just go elsewhere next time. Go somewhere that encourages people to stay away when they have coronavirus.

There's nothing argumentative or highly strung in my last post or, indeed, 'uncalm' about the post you think was.

Simply explaining my position (which is all I've done in this thread) is none of the above.

@ThisIsntMeHonestGuv

There's nothing argumentative or highly strung in my last post or, indeed, 'uncalm' about the post you think was.

Simply explaining my position (which is all I've done in this thread) is none of the above.

Exactly the same with me. I've only been explaining my position and this is all I've done in this thread. Calmly. Just for that, I've been called all sorts of things. Based on my opinion, because the pro-charge ranters don't get the same attacks. I don't understand why I have been attacked, but, whatever, they're the ones with the problem.

I think this is a bit harsh of the hairdresser. Op was upfront and surely this is preferable to the awful alternative. We have had hairdressers close locally due to positive COVID tests and then deep clean losing far more money than a one appointment.

Op think of whether you want to keep your hairdresser. They cannot make you pay but you may need to go elsewhere in future.

I have had to cancel last minute on one occasion over 4 years. I didnt pay up because he has also cancelled on me on three occasions. It is give and take.

Well, you have made several posts in a row that look like rants making allegations that cancellation feels are illegal, for example.

And saying businesses are grabby and entitled.

Your posts seem much more inflammatory and goady than anyone else's in this thread, which is I guess why people are responding to you in the way they have.

@ThisIsntMeHonestGuv

Well, you have made several posts in a row that look like rants making allegations that cancellation feels are illegal, for example.

And saying businesses are grabby and entitled.

Your posts seem much more inflammatory and goady than anyone else's in this thread, which is I guess why people are responding to you in the way they have.

Charging a cancellation fee without notice, is in deed illegal.

I feel you have a blindspot to the goady and inflammatory posts by those on your side. Try these:

*JBEM4

Not going to lie, I'm reading some of the responses on here and it's apparent that people are just shitty, self entitled and clearly not having to worry about their finances as they have zero empathy*

and

Gosh, what a masterclass in ungrammatical hyperbole.
KaptainKaveman
I think there is a very nasty view being peddled on this thread; the view that it is perfectly OK to cancel something last minute and not care about the loss of earnings that means for the hairdresser (or whoever it is).
People are triumphantly cheering (what was that about hyperbole?)

how much more you can screw them over (more hyperbole and hysteria)

and

Kalula, you need to relax, you should way over invested! (passive aggressive attack from yourself. You wouldn't have said it if I agreed with you)

and

How about instead of being so selfish

and

You should pay up and be grateful at their generosity at only charging you half

and

Wow, so many selfish people here who have no idea how hard it is running a business.
If I was the hairdresser I’d be delighted if the likes of you never came back

And that from 2 out of the 4 pages, I got bored and stopped there. I would say most of those are far worse than anything I said. But you have a blind spot because those who said it agree with you so you overlook them and instead pounce on me. Posters have been far more inflammatory calling customers who can't afford to pay for not getting a haircut as selfish and worse. But that's ok..... Double standards.

That's all I was doing, pointing out the double standards by inflammatory, abusive and goady posters. I only respond in kind. As butterpuffed said: Not surprised though at some of the terser 'of course you should pay' replies, this is MN after all hmm It really is the vipers nest.

I might be wrong, but I don't think there is anything illegal in charging a cancellation fee, whether or not notice has been given. I would imagine it would come under civil proceedings rather than criminal, and if there was no notice then it would be hard to pursue it in court, but I don't think that would make it illegal. But as I say, I could be wrong.

There was nothing PA about my comment. Your comments were many, frequent and impassioned (nobody else posted with anything like that frequency). Thankfully you do seem more chill now, which is great. But I do genuinely get concerned for people when they post in such a (what looks like) over-reactive way. I've seen that kind of behaviour in real life, and it ultimately ended up with someone getting sectioned, so I'm probably over-sensitive to it. (I'm not saying I think you will be, it was an extreme case, but it just sets my alarm bells ringing).

@Kalula the OP'S very first post states she had symptoms, got a test, which came back positive the following day, she THEN told the hairdresser it was positive. It does NOT say she phoned the day she got symptoms so I shall await your apology

What is the situation generally if people can't make a hairdressers appointment as they are unwell? Do they pay?