Can a restaurant charge a no-show fee? What UK law allows, and the four rules that keep the charge

"Can a restaurant charge a no-show fee" is typed by diners who have been charged and by owners who want to. The answer is yes, and the conditions are the whole of the answer, because a no-show charge that breaks them is the one the diner's bank reverses.

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Booking confirmation and no-show policy message maker

Fill in the booking, your cancel-by time and the charge per person. You get the confirmation, the day-before reminder and the message for a charged no-show, each stating the policy the same way.

Which letterBooking confirmationReminder the day beforeAfter a no-show that is charged Venue name Guest's name Date of the booking Time of the booking Number of people Cancel free of charge before this time the day before No-show charge per personKeep it at or below the gross profit you lose per head on a table you cannot re-fill, not the menu price. Total charged for this tableThe charge per person × the number of people. For 4 people at £10 it is £40. Used only in the no-show message. Phone number for changes Who the message is from

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• The charge must be shown before the booking is made, in the booking flow or on the phone. This confirmation repeats it and cannot introduce it.
• Do not charge if the table was filled. Check the walk-in record before you send the third message.
• Keep the confirmation you sent. If the guest disputes the charge with their card issuer, it is your evidence that the policy was agreed.
• For functions and large parties use a deposit that is returned if the date is re-let, not this message.

The rule this rests on: Consumer Rights Act 2015, Part 2 and Schedule 2, and the CMA's unfair contract terms guidance (CMA37): a charge must be agreed before the booking and reflect the venue's actual loss. A draft to check and adapt, not legal advice.

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The law the charge sits under

A booking is a contract with a consumer. Part 2 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 says a term that is unfair does not bind the consumer, and Schedule 2 lists terms that may be unfair, including one that requires a consumer who fails to perform the contract to pay a disproportionately high sum, and one that lets the trader keep sums the consumer has paid when the consumer cancels without the trader having to pay the consumer anything when it is the trader who cancels.

The Competition and Markets Authority's guidance on those provisions, CMA37, was updated on 22 July 2026 with new examples covering cancelled bookings and deposits. It is the document a card issuer, a trading standards officer or a judge reads when a no-show charge is disputed. A policy written in 2019 against the old guidance should be re-read.

The four rules

1. Agreed before the booking. The charge, the amount and when it applies must be shown when the booking is made, in the booking flow or stated on the phone, and confirmed in writing. A policy on the website that the diner was not shown is not agreed. "Our full terms are on the website" in the confirmation email is weaker than the three lines themselves.

2. Reflecting the actual loss. A charge for a cancelled booking should not exceed what the venue has lost. For a no-show, the loss is the gross profit on a table that could not be re-filled, plus any food bought specially; it is not the full menu price, because the food was not bought and the staff were paid either way. The no-show cost calculator shows the gross profit per head and flags a charge that goes above it.

3. Waived when the table is re-let. If the table was filled from the walk-in queue, the venue lost nothing to charge for. A policy that charges regardless is the clearest example of a charge that is a penalty rather than compensation.

4. Scaled by notice. A diner who cancels 48 hours ahead has cost the venue nothing; one who cancels at 7pm for 7.30 has. A sliding scale, nothing with reasonable notice, part with short notice, full on the night, is both fairer and easier to defend than one flat fee.

Card holds versus deposits

A card hold, where the card is authorised at booking and charged only on a no-show, is the usual mechanism for ordinary tables and avoids holding the diner's money. A deposit taken up front is for functions and large parties, and must be returned, less any actual loss, if the venue re-lets the date; our function quote maker writes the terms that way.

Either way the card scheme rules apply alongside consumer law. A no-show charge disputed with the card issuer is decided on whether the diner was clearly told and agreed, so the booking confirmation that states the policy is the evidence, and the venue that cannot produce it loses whatever the law says.

What the surveys say about using the fee

Barclaycard's May 2023 survey found fewer than 16% of operators recovered losses through cancellation fees, and 60% of cancellations came with less than 24 hours' notice. The fee is a backstop. The reminder the day before, the easy cancel link, and a short deposit list (parties of six and up, peak nights, December) do more than a fee on every table, and cost less in bookings not made.

The policy in three lines

"We hold your card details at booking. If you do not arrive and have not cancelled by [time] the day before, we charge £[x] a person, which covers what we lose on a table we could not re-fill; if we fill the table, there is no charge. Cancel any time before then free of charge by replying to this message or calling us."

That is the whole policy. It is shown before booking, it tracks the loss, it waives on re-let, and it scales by notice. It is the one an AI Reservations Assistant set up by Overlyft quotes when it confirms a table and chases an unconfirmed one.

This is general information for consumer bookings in the UK, not legal advice.