Man steps in to pay after table-of-four fled newly re-opened pub

'People like you are what makes the world a better place.'

Pub landlords have praised an ‘amazing young man’ who stepped in to cover the cost of a table-of-four who fled without paying their food bill.

Sarah and Andy House, who run the Kings Arms in Elham, East Kent, were furious when the group left without paying a penny of their £85 bill.

The pub reopened its doors for the first time in months on April 12 and had a ‘frantic’ first week of trading getting to grips with a new, Covid-friendly way of operating.

But matters were made worse when a table dashed off without covering their bill on the pub’s first Saturday back at work – and they weren’t the first customers to do it that week.

Mrs House was so upset she took to Facebook to call them out.

Her post read: ‘Thank you to the table of four, booked in under the name of Josh, who took up a reserved table that we turned customers away from as standing room only.

‘You were 20 minutes late, keeping the kitchen staff on, you received excellent service, food and drinks, however we will put your leaving very quickly before settling your £85 bill down as an oversight, because we are decent people working hard to earn a living, oh and you left in such a hurry you might want to come back and pick your cigarettes up.’

Mr and Mrs House are now having to keep people’s bank cards as deposits when they take tables due to the number of people who have left without paying.

But the couple’s faith in humanity was somewhat restored when 24-year-old Liam Jenner discreetly slipped the couple £90 in an envelope behind the bar.

Mr Jenner had seen Mrs House’s Facebook post and decided to help the couple who have dealt with months of closures due to the pandemic.

‘Sarah used to be my manager at the council a few years back so I’ve known her for a while and often travel to the pub to help her out by buying meals and drinks,’ he said.

‘I just thought it was very unfair that after such a struggle for pubs during the last year or so with Covid and lockdown that people could do such a thing to struggling businesses.

‘So I thought her business could probably do with the money a lot more than I needed it right now.’

When Mrs House discovered what Mr Jenner had done, she took to Facebook to praise him and donated half of the money to mental health charity Mind.

She wrote: ‘Thank you all so much for your messages of support regarding those lovely people who forgot to pay.

‘I need to shout out Liam Jenner who came to the pub to hand us £90 after seeing the post on fb.

‘You are one amazing young man Liam, we would like to donate half of the money to Mind.

‘You and people like you are what makes the world a better place.’

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