Quebec moves to crack down on restaurant no-shows
Under new rules, restaurants could charge clients who ghost reservations up to $10 per person
Quebec is looking to crack down on restaurant no-shows by allowing owners to charge clients who don't honour their reservations.
The Quebec government announced changes to the Consumer Protection Act on Wednesday and with consultations underway, citizens have 45 days to submit their comments regarding the draft regulation.
Quebec's restaurant association has said that no-shows can cost businesses tens of thousands of dollars every year.
Citing data from the association, Quebec's Office de la protection du consommateur (OPC) said in a news release that the phenomenon of no-shows can lead to financial losses averaging $49,000 per establishment every year, with some restaurants facing losses nearing $100,000.
Under the proposed rules, restaurants could charge clients who ghost their reservations up to $10 per person. But there are conditions.
The rules would only apply to groups of five or more people and those groups would have up to three hours prior to their reservation to cancel.
Restaurants would also have to inform people of the potential charges before the reservation is made, and send out a reminder between six and 48 hours beforehand.
Furthermore, if only one member of a party shows up, the remaining no-shows can't be charged.
Finally, fees cannot be applied before the time of the reservation and restaurants need to make it easy for clients to make cancellations.
Measures to act as a 'disincentive'
Quebec's Junior Economy Minister Christopher Skeete said restaurant no-shows has been a growing phenomenon in recent years and the province is the only jurisdiction in North America where charging clients for missed reservations isn't allowed.
"What we're seeing ever since the end of the pandemic is that people make multiple reservations for groups and then decide what they want to eat that evening," he said.
"The result is that sometimes, they forget to cancel those reservations and they leave the restaurant owners having to scramble to refill those seats."
The new measures, Skeete said, aren't meant to compensate restaurant owners for lost revenues but rather to create a "a disincentive for people to abuse reservations."
"Somebody who has money on the line is more likely to act in the right fashion," he said.
When asked by reporters at the National Assembly why the penalty wasn't stiffer, Skeete said that in his opinion, "charging more ... wouldn't strike the balance between what's good for the consumer and what's good for restaurant owners."
'It's a major step,' restaurant association says
Martin Vézina, vice-president of public affairs for the Quebec Restaurant Association, applauded Wednesday's announcement.
"It's a major step," he said. "It will give us the tools to finally charge a penalty for people that [don't] show up at reservations."
That being said, Vézina believes some changes are needed to make the proposed regulations better for the industry.
Vézina said the association will ask to withdraw the provision requiring a minimum of five patrons to be able to charge a penalty.
He said that in fine-dining establishments, groups tend to be smaller but no-shows are still a problem. Setting a minimum of five people wouldn't really help them.
The second change the association is seeking is to raise the penalty restaurants can charge from $10 to $20.
Although Vézina said he believes the new regulations will help, not everyone in the industry agrees.
Penalties could erode relationships with clients
David Ferguson, chef and owner of Restaurant Gus in Montreal's Petite-Patrie neighbourhood, said he doesn't think the measures are even necessary.
"First and foremost, the cat's already out of the bag. Restaurants are doing it all over the city," he said of owners charging penalties for no-shows.
"If you go on OpenTable or anything such as that, you're going to be asked for your credit card."
In a news release Wednesday, Quebec Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette acknowledged that some restaurants have been skirting the rules and imposing penalties and that's why the rules are needed.
"To protect consumers from potential abuse and also to ensure consistency, it has become essential to regulate penalties for ghost reservations," the release reads in French.
"This will ensure clear and reasonable rules apply to the benefit of both customers and restaurateurs."
For his part, Ferguson doesn't plan on requiring credit cards for clients who make reservations at his restaurant, choosing instead to bank on a more personal approach.
"Our philosophy at Gus is personal relationships. It's about having to make a phone call to make a reservation rather than just hitting a button on an app. And therefore we build relationships and trust with our clients."
The new regulations are expected to come into effect on July 17. Details of the consultations into the new regulations can be found on the Office de la protection du consommateur's website.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
With files from Cathy Senay, Shawn Lyons and Radio-Canada