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Original poster

Should I be upset at paying £300 for haircut

831 replies

charlieginger1987 · 16/04/2021 22:16

Hi ladies,
Have waited 7 months to get my hair done and finally went today. I got a full head of balayage highlights, a root tint to cover my greys and a cut and blow dry. The website was really unclear and it said £130 for a full head of balayage. Knowing sometimes that hairdressers add optional extras I budgeted £180 just in case. I got to the till, the receptionist seemed awkward, didn't confirm the price straightaway, so I asked her what it was, and £300 appeared on the credit card machine. I can only guess that she didn't say the figure out loud because she was embarrassed to charge me that much. I didn't want to say too much in front of a full salon full of people but I simply said "wow that's expensive?" She shrugged and didn't say anything but "your e-receipt will be sent directly to you". I thought I'd best pay and then query the receipt later as I already felt so embarrassed and caught off guard.

Looking at the receipt they have charged me for:
£130 full head of balayage
£65 full head of permanent colour
£65 ladies cut and finish
£35 olaplex
£5 tip
Total: £300

Am I right to be completely shocked at the price of this?? It did take 4 hours and I have long thick hair but really? Have you ever heard of a haircut this expensive and fellow hair stylists, does this price sound reasonable to you?

Needless to say I have sent Rush an email but am I being unreasonable questioning the price of this haircut?

OP posts:
BusterGonad · 19/04/2021 09:01

This thread is hilarious, now I completely understand why so many people walk around with terrible hair.
I'm surprised no one's been on saying they use their manky nail clippers and coffee granules to dye their hair! 😂
You cannot compare a box dye to a salon treatment or compare your best mates visiting you at home for £3.50 to a salon in the centre of London.
I dye my own hair with a box dye, there's no way it looks even half as good as a professional job, I just don't have the spare cash every few months for a salon job.
I think many on here don't value their hair dressers at all, and it's a real shame.
Also'mates rates' only really benefits one person.

Thewiseoneincognito · 19/04/2021 09:07

OP did you not ask for a quote before you took a seat in a Liverpool St Central London salon for 4 hours of work and treatments? 😆

It’s a bit like walking around Waitrose filling your trolley with a weeks shopping and expecting an Aldi bill.

bemusedmoose · 19/04/2021 09:10

Batmans balls that's expensive!! I've had a top notch hair cut and style at Charles Worthington in London, Champers and coffee while you wait, olaplex treatment (i have insanely long hair - they have to wash it in 2 sinks!) for well under £100. My hair looked amazing! and felt like silk and stayed looking amazing for weeks. £300 would have given me a heart attack! I would have questioned it at the time - how can they charge for full dye as well!?

Whatwouldscullydo · 19/04/2021 09:17

This thread is hilarious, now I completely understand why so many people walk around with terrible hair

Well the reviews on rush aren't great are they. I'd rather have shit 50 pound hair than shit 300 pound hair.

Objecting to a bill twice that if any salon ir hair dresser does not mean no one values their hair dresser ffs.

Why are we going to tell ours to charge us more? They set the prices themselves before we even walk through the door.

MrsBadcrumble123 · 19/04/2021 09:29

I would not have paid that!! They should have given you quote prior to services that is extortionate. They are hairdressers fgs not brain surgeons!

soditall56 · 19/04/2021 09:30

@goodwinter

How are they charging for a full head of balayage AND a full head of permanent colour?!

Did they ask you if you wanted the Olaplex treatment?

I don't understand this either. Surely one or the other?
MakkaPakka84 · 19/04/2021 09:41

There are many sneaky tricks salons use to charge more. One is, for example, to charge blow-dry on top of colour: surely I would expect them to dry my hair for free after the colour? I understand that cuts are charged separately, although I think trims and restyles should have different prices.

In my experience most salons do that. I live in Oxford and everyone is the same. Some village ones are more affordable, but it can be a bit hit and miss about how good the stylists are.

I am going to the salon next week and I have already started selling things on eBay to soften the blow Grin

JaffaMum · 19/04/2021 09:45

They should have made it clear from the start with the pricing when you booked in as they normally share the stylist's level of experience and how that reflects the price. I think the pricing is pretty normal for London, however, and you may have got stung because you went with a more experienced stylist perhaps by the looks of the haircut price? I don't think you can argue this one with the salon as it is unfortunately for you to really query the price before you take on the service.
Hope it looks nice in any case, just see it as a treat deserved after 7 months of lockdown hair and never go back there again!

GladAllOver · 19/04/2021 09:48

Reading this makes me realise how much money I have saved over the years by not going to hairdressers. Thank you :)
(I trim the fringe and DH trims the length across the back. 10mins total. )

AramintaLee · 19/04/2021 09:50

This sort of thing has happened to me before. I had an updo done for a Christmas party. As I was going straight from work, I booked to have it done at a city centre salon by my office rather than the small salon I usually go to where I live. An updo at my local salon cost about £15-20... the city centre salon charged £90. I was shocked and embarrassed... I paid them and didn't question it because I'm sure that's just how much it costs and I was silly not to check or ask beforehand.

The worst part is, it looked awful. I ended up taking it all down and doing it myself an hour later.

That was a harsh lesson learned in how area will inflate the cost (I was very young and didn't know this)

Louby123 · 19/04/2021 09:53

Being a hairdresser myself, and you saying where you got it done I'd say this is onnthe top end but not unreasonable.. hairdrsssers have got a stigma against them that we should charge but when you take into account the training the person will have been on the time spent in the chair. The cost of paying the stylist and l also the cost of rates and other expenses will all be covered in every sercice price.Also the cost of products and mainly the actual knowledge of the hairdresser.. (balayage isn't easy...at all)
It should have been stated in a full consultation the cost of the service so that is on them.. if you forget about the cost and look in the mirror and like what you see and actually feel better than it's definitely worth every penny. X 🥰

Picklesbaby · 19/04/2021 09:53

Your lucky it actually looks good . I know people that have been there and had awful outcomes 😂
I pay 150 for balayage and a toner , olaplex cut and blow dry . Unless you have 2 heads You’ve been ripped off by paying for a full head of colour on top of a full head of balayage sadly!

VapeVamp12 · 19/04/2021 10:06

My hairdresser does balayage and cut for £80. She is a mobile hairdresser though, not a salon.

Wexone · 19/04/2021 10:07

I get similar done to my hair as what you have got done, I pay 220 euros for mine, which is around 185 sterling. My hair is half way down my back and is very very thick, plus I go to what is deemed a very expensive hairdresser in my friends opinion. I can afford it, i also love my hair every time its done, never look at it a few days after and wish it was done different etc. Have coloured my hair myself during lock down to cover the grey - never gain. I don't care what anyone says you do not get the same effect as a hairdresser by doing it your self at home. There is a reason hairdressers train for years at their trade. Plus i have tried every chemist and supermarket brand there is not one that covers grey at all. I think you should write them a polite but firm email or visit them, explaining your issues and hope that the outcome will be some refund, this is also a big lesson learned for future

DenisetheMenace · 19/04/2021 10:08

I wouldn’t pay the £180 you budgeted either.
£300 is nuts.

Wexone · 19/04/2021 10:18

@Valerievalerie well said this applies to all self employed people , my partner is a self employed builder, he is currently looking about retraining and getting out of trade all together. He is fed up of the lack of appreciation of his skill, everyone thinks he is out to rob them and that people suddenly become experts by looking at you tube and reading something online. Disregarding the fact he is doing it the past 25 years and knows what is what.

Bluehues · 19/04/2021 10:31

Do let us know if they get back to you, & what they say if you can. There’s nothing wrong with querying it after the event. I didn’t get over charged (I don’t think) but payed £80 for a cut & colour (very thick long hair) & I wasn’t happy at all with the colour, I rang up a day later & the manager actually told me she saw me leave & wasn’t happy with what her colleague had done colour wise! The fixed it for free and thanked me for allowing them to put it right

BusterGonad · 19/04/2021 11:13

Whatwiukdscullydo I'm referring to people cutting their own hair or a £5 job, obviously a £50 hair cut should be great but not so much a £5 one.

BusterGonad · 19/04/2021 11:14

*Whatwouldscullydo

mylifestory · 19/04/2021 11:26

Questions which need to be answered first - have you been there before and had something similar done there or elsewhere? Did you assume the haircut would be for free, and colouring if you just paid for the balayage? Whereabouts are you? You were having a lot done in one go. This isnt unusual in London.

payens · 19/04/2021 11:27

I get all that done for £70! That's outrageous.

IntermittentParps · 19/04/2021 11:39

Did you assume the haircut would be for free, and colouring if you just paid for the balayage?
I don't think the OP thought the haircut would be for free. But she didn't 'assume' anything about the colour; she didn't ask for a colour, because she was having balayage. I don't know why people can't grasp this.

As for the stuff about self-employed people, I'm freelance and when I get sent a job I give a cost/time estimate so my clients can tell me if the cost is going to be OK or if we need to work out a deal, so there are no nasty surprises for either party. It's just basic professional behaviour and nothing to do with whether or not people 'value my skills'.

Moonstone1234 · 19/04/2021 11:41

God its a race to the bottom here, people claiming they have fab hair and the same results for pennies.

You carry on cutting yourself and using box dyes.

The rest of us will enjoy the experience of going to a snazzy hairdresser. I wouldnt use the chains like Rush and Toni and Guy. I used to go to Percy and Reed in London. Loved the vibe and experience. London is just too far now but there is a reason London hairdressers are more expensive. The clue is the house prices are too.....

SheldonesqueHasGotTheWeevils · 19/04/2021 12:13

No race to the bottom for me Grin

I am at the bottom.

My hair hasn’t been cut for about 20 months. At least. I really don’t know.

I think the hairdresser would deserve £300 for attempting to make me look human again.

In reality it will be about £35 I think. I have no idea though Blush

Easilyannoyed · 19/04/2021 12:43

The individual prices seem about right for each item at a high end salon but I don't understand why you paid for a full head of colour AND a balayage. Was it two separate colouring sessions to get your hair right? Did they ask you for the olaplex? If so, then you got what you paid for.