Paying a deposit at the hairdressers?

I'd kick them into touch!
See, getting into World Cup mode!!

Alea - I'm inclined to agree but it's taken me years to get them trained into what I want them to do - and not what they would like to do - to my hair!

If you're never one of the 'no shows', then I don't see the problem. You know you're either going to turn up or give them reasonable notice if you want to change the appointment, so the deposit will not be lost.
If, on the other hand, you are guilty of not turning up for appointments, then you will understand why they're doing it

Indinana - I'm not sure if you do lose your deposit or not, if you give reasonable notice. I'm going tomorrow, so that's something I will ask. No, I have only missed an appointment once in seven years and that was when I was ill and I got DH to phone and explain.

I think more and more 'service providers' are doing this on the advice of their banks and accountants. My Zumba class is paid for in advance so if you don't show without making your excuses you lose it- she has to pay for the hall whether we turn up or not. In your case as a regular at your hairdresser I think she should wave it for valued, regular customers. my hairdresser gives you a stamp on a loyalty card (like coffee shops) and you get a hairdo for every 9th attendance - came to £50 in my case in the summer so well worth doing. DH's barber does the same but every 6th cut - only takes her 5 minutes to do his baby fine locks.

What next? I used to go to a beauty salon to have my eyebrows done. I made a couple of appointments that I couldn't attend due to family problems. The beautician said 'I have a naughty book and I am going to put you in there if you cancel or change an appointment again'. She was serious. Needless to say I never went back.

We have not had any replies from people whose work is by appointments. It would be interesting to see what their opinion is.

How many missed appointments make a difference to the viability of a business? One a day? Two a day? Five a day? Ten a day?

It depends how long each is for and what the cost of providing that service is - and what the difference is between costs and takings. If it is a little local hairdressers, their charges might not be very mush above their costs, so missing, say, two lots of charges out of twenty in a day would mean losing ten percent of that day's takings. If their margins are ten percent, (no idea whether that is common) that means a day with no income at all!

A prestigious West End salon could have much higher margins and be more able to absorb the fall - but they are also in a much better position to demand and get attendance at all appointments, so they are not so likely to be badly affected.

Would anyone be pleased if their boss said they would not be paid for one hour of their work today because there would be no customers there then?

Same with GP and hospital appointments - no shows mean lost work.

I am afraid I agree with the hairdresser. Missed appointments mean she loses custom. It takes two hours to do my hair and if I didn't turn up it would be a quarter of her working day wasted.
A relative is a practice manager at a GP practice and they say missed appointments are a big problem, some people book several just in case and then don't turn up. I think a booking fee, even for a GP, is reasonable.

For people whose trade involves customers making appointments, late cancellations and people missing appointments are one of the perils of the job - and every job has its problem side.

I am with the hairdresser who black booked habitual non-attenders but more than that is a no-no.

I think, provided a client can cancel an appointment within a reasonable period, it is understandable why the business is doing this. Hairdressers have to earn money like anybody else and if people just don't bother to turn up it must be very annoying. £25 seems a bit excessive though. The idea of "blacklisting" a serial offender seems like a better way of dealing with it.

I think, in theory, the same (a "fine") should apply to those who - for no good reason - don't turn up for hospital and doctor appointments on more than one occasion. It would be quite difficult - and possibly more costly - to impose such a charge but it may send out a message that such behaviour is unacceptable. The danger would be that people with mental health and addiction problems would be the most likely to fall foul of such a rule if it were applied across the board.

I used to work to appointments.
It was annoying when people cancelled at short notice or missed appointments altogether, but sometimes it was actually quite useful as we could use the time for emergencies or for people who needed things doing quickly.
We did ask people to pay a £10 deposit for long appointments (an hour or more) which no one seemed to think unreasonable.
We only charged for missed appointments for serial offenders (3 missed appointments) as people usually had a good reason and hadn't done it on purpose. The effect was usually that they went elsewhere but that was often a 'result'

My dentist charges for a no show or failure to give 24 hours notice of a cancellation - its about £40.

I've been to the salon today and asked about this. Apparently, if a customer gives 48 hours minimum notice of cancellation or change of appointment then the deposit will not be forfeit. It is only for 'no shows'. She says she has a customer who has 'not shown' ten times without explanation even though she sends reminder texts to all customers. Incidentally, this is a small local salon, not a big city establishment and they must be doing quite well as I heard today that they are planning a major refurbishment over the Christmas break.

nottooold I think it would make better business sense for the salon owner to tell the no-show person to clear off and annoy the competition down the road, rather than possibly alienate all the other customers who keep their appointments by instituting a deposit scheme.
If the salon is doing well, they don't need customers who actually cost them money to have on their books.

48 hours minimum seems rather unreasonable! What if you wake up on the day of your appointment with D&V, or have an accident on the way?

Ana - What's D&V? Quick tell me, I might have it already.

Tsk, I'll have to look up the spelling now!

Diarrhoea and vomiting.

How do you make an appointment over the phone if you have to pay a deposit? I sometimes have to cancel appoints at short notice due to health conditions. I would resent losing a deposit when it's due to my health.

By debit card maybe vq

Yes, I used a debit card although DH told me I should have used a credit card as it offers more protection.

Like vq I have had to cancel appointments at short notice due to health problems - including a mammogram, blood tests, and dental appointments. You can't attend these things if you can't get off the toilet, or if you're doubled up with back pain and can hardly move. And these are not things you can plan for .

I usually book my next appointment whilst I'm paying for my last one.
My hairdresser sends a text a day or two before the next one is due and asks for a simple Yes or No; or a phone call to rearrange. This avoids unforeseen missed appointments and the need to ask for a deposit. It's a system which I like, and he's used it for a few years now - so I guess he finds it's successful.

I visit a dental hygienist 3 monthly and her charge is £45 for 30 minutes. £20 must be paid up front when the appointment is made, even if (unlikely) I was returning later the same day for treatment. It works well.

I wish that my GP surgery would work on 3 strikes and you are out. It would not be cost effective for a surgery to take money in advance in case somebody did DNA. Somebody would have to take the cash, records would have to be kept and the money banked. What would they do if somebody said that they could not afford to pay? Last month there were 156 DNAs and I find that appalling.