Pubs lose an average of £972 a year to refunds
According to research conducted by payment provider Paymentsense, small businesses in the UK lost an average of £12,083 a month between 2021 and 2022 due to repeated refunds.
Bars, pubs and nightclubs lost an average of £81 a month in refunds, equating to £972 a year, between October 2021 and September 2022 compared with the same period two years ago.
Portsmouth lost the most to refunds with an average of £353 reimbursed per month while London lost the second highest amount at £112 and Twickenham saw the third highest amount of refunds during this period at £99 a month.
Consumers spending less
Rank | Location | Average amount refunded per location per month (£) | Number of refunds per location per month |
1 | Portsmouth | £353 | 1.9 |
2 | London | £112 | 5.9 |
3 | Twickenham | £99 | 2.9 |
4 | Kingston | £96 | 2.4 |
5 | Slough | £93 | 3.8 |
6 | Dorchester | £69 | 4.7 |
7 | Birmingham | £67 | 3.1 |
8 | Gloucester | £61 | 1.3 |
9 | Reading | £61 | 1.5 |
10 | Norwich | £60 | 1.5 |
11 | Guilford | £58 | 1.6 |
12 | Ipswich | £58 | 1.3 |
13 | Brighton | £58 | 2.3 |
14 | Oxford | £57 | 1.2 |
15 | Oldham | £55 | 0.9 |
16 | Edinburgh | £55 | 1.6 |
17 | Lancaster | £55 | 1.8 |
18 | Manchester | £54 | 2.2 |
19 | Swansea | £53 | 1.6 |
20 | Southampton | £52 | 1.6 |
The figures showed the trades and trade supplies industry lost the most amount of money to refunds while the accommodation and travel sector saw the second highest rate.
However, the overall data across all industries showed a 22% drop compared with 2021 levels.
A spokesperson for Paymentsense said: “Serial refunders can prove very expensive for small business, so seeing a 22% decline is a very positive thing for business owners.
“However, it’s likely that the reduction is a result of consumers spending less, thus needing to return less.”
Attract custom
This comes as figures released earlier this week revealed inflation rates rose by 10.1% in the 12 months to January 2023, down from 10.5% previously.
Additionally, price increases and pressure from energy costs on top of inflation have continued to “hinder” hospitality, according to UKHospitality chief executive Kate Nicholls.
Nicholls added: “A drop in the cost of visiting venues in January is a clear reflection of venues squeezing every drop out of their margins in a bid to attract custom in order to stay afloat after a Christmas hit by rail strikes and amid the annual New Year drop in consumer spend.”
