# Asked publican to cater soup&sandwitches for 60. No price agreed, invoiced for €1k!



## jackswift (5 Apr 2011)

A friend of mine asked a publican to cater for 60 people. 

He said that he would supply soup and sandwiches so my friend agreed but never settled on a price as she knew the publican and reckoned that it would be around €300. 

All went well until my friend went to pay the publican, he handed her a bill for €995!

Does my friend have any comeback?


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## mercman (6 Apr 2011)

Of course he has. Blame himself for not asking the price instead of assuming it. Why should he blame anybody else for his stupidity.


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## niceoneted (6 Apr 2011)

That works out at €16.5833333 per head. Something wrong there if the 60 were catered for. At most I would expect to pay €10 per head and at least €6. Any chance tea and coffee were offered. If so add €1 - €2 per head. 
Is this a regular service and if so what is normally charged. 
Perhaps he had to get some one in to do it if its not done normally and that is what they charged. 
Never assume a price is the bottom line.


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## jackswift (6 Apr 2011)

mercman said:


> Of course he has. Blame himself for not asking the price instead of assuming it. Why should he blame anybody else for his stupidity.


 She


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## j26 (6 Apr 2011)

Obviously she should never drink there again, but otherwise, no comeback.


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## jackswift (6 Apr 2011)

j26 said:


> Obviously she should never drink there again, but otherwise, no comeback.


 She didn't pay the bill yet and has already disputed it. The publican said that the original bill was higher and that he brought it down to that as his best price.


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## salaried (6 Apr 2011)

She probably should have asked but we all make those mistakes.We used a bar here in Cork for my mother in laws funeral a few months back. We asked for a price for soup and sandwiches , The cost was 7.00 euro per head. We obviously did not know how many people would be there so the manager suggested a carvery lunch at 10.00 euro per head. We were given a bill of 500.000 euro so 50 carvery lunches were served. If we opted for the soup and sandwiches then obviously it would have been priced at 350.00 euro, In your friends case 420.00 euro. Niceoneteds calculations of 16.50 euro per head seems off the wall. I would ask for an itemised bill if only for the sake of it.


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## Bronte (6 Apr 2011)

Your friend has no comeback because she didn't agree a price in advance and the pub can charge her whatever.

To make it easier on her why doens't she do the calculations, how much is soup, a sandwich and tea and a beverage (if that is what everybody had ) and see how that compares to 16.5 Euro.  

Just curious why did she not ask a price in advance?


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## delgirl (6 Apr 2011)

Perhaps there was a charge for room hire?


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## Complainer (6 Apr 2011)

delgirl said:


> Perhaps there was a charge for room hire?


If you're bringing 50 paying customers into a pub, the pub should be paying you, not vice versa.


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## jackswift (6 Apr 2011)

Bronte said:


> Your friend has no comeback because she didn't agree a price in advance and the pub can charge her whatever.
> 
> To make it easier on her why doens't she do the calculations, how much is soup, a sandwich and tea and a beverage (if that is what everybody had ) and see how that compares to 16.5 Euro.
> 
> Just curious why did she not ask a price in advance?


 She knows the publican well and goes drinking there once a week, so I guess she assumed that he wouldn't rip her off.


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## jackswift (6 Apr 2011)

delgirl said:


> Perhaps there was a charge for room hire?


 No there wasn't. The people that were there bought plenty drink as well.


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## Oscaresque (6 Apr 2011)

jackswift said:


> She knows the publican well and goes drinking there once a week, so I guess she assumed that he wouldn't rip her off.



Sounds like he is taking advantage of the fact that as a regular customer she may not want to upset the apple cart by complaining.


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## Bronco Lane (7 Apr 2011)

mercman said:


> Of course he has. Blame himself for not asking the price instead of assuming it. Why should he blame anybody else for his stupidity.


Yes. Read the Terms and Conditions. Just like when you are handing over a life policy to a bank or similar for a loan.


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## Bronte (7 Apr 2011)

Oscaresque said:


> Sounds like he is taking advantage of the fact that as a regular customer she may not want to upset the apple cart by complaining.


 

Wait a second we do not know that he is taking advantage as there was no prior agreement as to price and we do not know what was supplied. It's very easy to cry foul afterward. If the publican overcharged then the OP has a choice and that is to never frequent the premises again. Personally I find it hard to believe that a publican would overcharge for a single event knowing that they risked losing further custom.

OP thinks it should have cost five euro a head.  I'm not sure on the price of soup, sandwiches and tea could anyone give me a head's up on this.


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## mercman (7 Apr 2011)

Bronco Lane said:


> Yes. Read the Terms and Conditions. Just like when you are handing over a life policy to a bank or similar for a loan.



Did you know that sarcasm is the lowest form of wit.


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## Ceist Beag (7 Apr 2011)

Has your friend got a breakdown of the bill? How does the price per item compare with the bar menu price?


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## jackswift (7 Apr 2011)

Bronte said:


> Wait a second we do not know that he is taking advantage as there was no prior agreement as to price and we do not know what was supplied. It's very easy to cry foul afterward. If the publican overcharged then the OP has a choice and that is to never frequent the premises again. Personally I find it hard to believe that a publican would overcharge for a single event knowing that they risked losing further custom.
> 
> OP thinks it should have cost five euro a head.  I'm not sure on the price of soup, sandwiches and tea could anyone give me a head's up on this.


 Like I said earlier soup and sandwiches and nothing else supplied. If you think that charging €16.58 a head for soup and sandwiches isn't taking advantage you would want to have a serious rethink.

They are going to give an itemized bill so that should be interesting.


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## BazFitz (7 Apr 2011)

There's probably drink included - Some cute hoors probably stuck drinks on the non existent tab.


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## mcaul (10 Apr 2011)

You'd need to know the full story before you can make a judgement on this.

If it was a pub taht normally served food, then the price is escessive as the materials, staff & facilities are there already. Proper cost should be no more than €400, though many places will these days will provide this free or at nominal cost. 

However if it is a pub that doesn't have a bar food menu and doesn't do food normally, then the pub has to get in the plates, bowls, cutlery, extra staff, etc etc and €995 for this would not be out of reason.


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## jackswift (14 Apr 2011)

The pub normally serves food for it's customers.


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## allthedoyles (14 Apr 2011)

Ok - we had a christening recently in local pub . - 50 guests in total .

Catering was undertaken by a local take-away specialist , not the pub .

Soup , Sandwiches , Chicken Gougons , onion rings , - total cost € 270 .

Music ( one-man band €150 ) 

All agreed prior to the event .


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## jhegarty (14 Apr 2011)

What's the list price for soup and a sandwich in the pub ?


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## ardmacha (23 Apr 2011)

You or someone else go along an ask for a quote from the pub for similar services. It would give you a number to work from.


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## Complainer (23 Apr 2011)

ardmacha said:


> someone else go along an ask for a quote from the pub for similar services. It would give you a number to work from.



Excellent idea.


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## dewdrop (23 Apr 2011)

There are some guys who would easily knock back 4/5 sandwiches with ease so when the dust settles the bill may not be that bad.


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## mcaul (6 May 2011)

jackswift said:


> The pub normally serves food for it's customers.


 
Then it was expensive.

A good Soup & Sandwich is about €7 in most places, and even allowing for extra sandwiches, €500 would be at the top end of the scale.


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## Mpsox (6 May 2011)

Assuming it was simply for soup and sandwiches, in a pub that regularly provides food, 1000 is a rip off. If you walked into a pub and saw a price for soup and sandwiches on the board of €16.50, you'd walk out again.

OP should ask for an itemised bill so she understands what she is paying for. To me, the publican should have been offering a discount on normal prices, given that the OP was bring 50 customers in who would spend money in the pub


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## Ceist Beag (6 May 2011)

The OP said an itemised bill was requested a month ago so to the OP did your friend get it by now?


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## Neg Covenant (6 May 2011)

She could tell the publican she did not agree to that price.   She could say she only asked for one sambo and one soup per person.   She could tell the publican either he accepts what she is willing to pay (i.e. gives her a receipt in full settlement) or he can sue her for it and they can fight it out in court in due course.

Of course, if she was there on the day telling them to dish out more stuff she will be in a difficult spot.


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