Busy pub? Then pay more for a pint! Britain’s biggest pub chain will charge drinkers 20p more for a beer at the weekend during peak times
- Britain’s biggest pub chain will charge more for pints when footfall is higher
- Stonegate Group’s ‘dynamic’ pricing is being rolled out in 800 of its 4,500 pubs
Britain’s biggest pub chain has started charging its customers 20p extra for a pint during busy trading periods.
Stonegate Group, which owns more than 4,500 pubs across the UK, has begun adding a surcharge at peak times at 800 of its sites across the country.
The firm, which owns chains including Yates’s and Slug & Lettuce, first brought in peak time surcharges for major sports events, including the World Cup in 2018.
Now, the surcharges have been made permanent in some Stonegate pubs, meaning they come into force when footfall is high, such as on weekends.
The pub chain says its new ‘dynamic’ pricing system will help it cover the costs of bringing in extra staff and bringing in more bouncers.
Stonegate Group, which owns Slug & Lettuce, will charge customers an extra 20p for a pint during peak trading periods
A pint of beer now costs more than £6 in areas across London and the south east of England
A spokesperson for the company told The Telegraph that the surcharges will vary between pubs but that any price hikes would be ‘marginal’.
Photos of signs informing customers of the extra charges were shared on social media, alongside complaints from pubgoers.
A ‘polite notice’ in one Stonegate pub said ‘dynamic pricing is currently live in this venue during this peak trading session’.
The sign says the surcharges will pay for extra staff, extra cleaning, plastic pint glasses, and ‘satisfying and complying with licensing requirements’.
The notice explains that ‘any increase in our pricing today is to cover these additional requirements.’
Twitter users took to the platform to complain, as Paul Woodhead said the pub’s dynamic pricing was ‘driving away customers’.
The pub chain, which also owns Be At One, said the extra costs will help pay for additional staff
A spokesperson for Stonegate Group said the extra charges let it offer various promotions including happy hours.
‘Across the managed business our dynamic pricing encompasses the ability to offer guests a range of promotions including happy hours, two-for-one cocktails, and discounts on food and drink products at different times on different days throughout the week,’ the spokesperson told The Telegraph.
‘This flexibility may mean that on occasions pricing may marginally increase in selective pubs and bars due to the increased cost demands on the business with additional staffing or licensing requirements such as additional door team members.’
MailOnline contacted Stonegate Group for comment.
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