One in 20 people have reportedly walked out of a restaurant without paying - a crime often known now as a ‘dine and dash’.

Senior reporter Lauren Abbott looks into the phenomenon in Kent and asks what can be done to stop greedy diners ripping-off already under pressure hospitality businesses?

You can picture the scene: the big family meal has been eaten, a mountain of dirty plates and strewn cutlery decorate the table, the kids are getting antsy and it’s time to catch a server’s eye or wave your bank card politely to indicate you’re ready to settle the bill before leaving.

And yet across Kent this year there have been more than 15 instances each month, on average, where customers at pubs, restaurants or cafes have got up and left without paying.

It’s a crime - coined a ‘dine and dash’ - that is said to be sweeping the nation with increasing numbers of hospitality businesses up and down the country getting conned by greedy diners who have no intention of picking up the tab.

Various tactics are reportedly employed - ranging from those who eat a full meal before finding something to complain about and refusing to pay through to those who simply disappear without coughing up.

There are said to be serial offenders too, who on more than one occasion will tuck-in but then duck-out without paying.

Among them is builder Anthony Lamont, who attempted to flee without settling his £95 tab after knocking back food, nine pints and three double vodkas at The Royal in Deal in June.

The 43-year-old targeted The Royal while already on a suspended sentence for a near identical “dine and dash” at Don Vincenzo Italian restaurant in Rochester earlier the same month where he’d run up a £100 bill of seafood linguine with Jack Daniels before telling staff he had no means of paying.

Lamont from Poole in Dorset, who appeared at Folkestone magistrates where he admitted theft and breaching his suspended sentence, was handed a 200-day jail term of which he’ll serve 100, and ordered to pay The Royal £95.70 in compensation.

In his victim impact statement the hotel’s owner said incidents of this sort had a real detrimental effect on small businesses like his.

Dine and dash in numbers

Kent Police received 174 reports last year relating to the ‘non-payment’ of food or drink from restaurants, cafes or bars.

From January to June this year, that figure is already 98, according to data released by the force under a Freedom of Information request.

But Kent’s police and crime commissioner Matthew Scott says he is very keen to understand if the true number of offences is in reality much greater.

He suspects many dine and dash crimes go unreported by business owners and therefore aren’t being fed into police statistics.

He explained: “I had a complaint about a dine and dash in one town a couple of months ago saying they needed help, and that’s great, but it hadn’t been reported.

“What we need to do is make sure we’re making it as easy as possible for everybody to report these so that the police can act upon them accordingly because - I suspect - probably a lot of them are not being reported.”

One of those who admits to not reporting a dine and dash incident is Gravesham businessman Graham Broadbent, owner of Marie’s Tea Room.

He was left out of pocket after customers enjoyed an afternoon tea at his High Street eatery but then slipped through a side door without paying.

Despite having CCTV footage thanks to a good network of cameras, Graham said ‘through no fault of their own’ he feels police are understaffed and stretched so he instead opted to write the loss off and move on.

He said: “The police don’t have that much time to deal with anything anymore. I’m not saying it’s their fault.

“I think people know that the police probably aren’t going to come after them for such a little thing.”

Graham - who owns companies across the town - says he feels there’s been a noticeable increase recently in people attempting to ‘scam’ money from businesses.

He points to clever tricks in which customers are ‘swapping change’ until staff are so confused by a repeated exchange in notes and coins - usually under the guise of breaking money up - that people come away with more than they started with.

“It’s so disheartening” he added.

Detective Inspector James Ross from Kent Police said the force fully appreciates the impact on hospitality businesses when people walk off without paying and says his officers will investigate when contacted.

He said: ‘We understand the impact these types of incidents can have on businesses and would urge owners to take preventative measures to ensure they don’t fall victim.

”This can include installing good quality CCTV that covers all exits as well as the car park, and asking the party to provide a credit card when they make a booking.

”If an incident does occur, report it straight away and Kent Police will carry out a full and thorough investigation to bring offenders to justice.”

In 2018 a report by Barclaycard suggested that as many as one in 20 diners had walked away without settling their food or drink bill.

The industry’s trade voice UKHospitality says the issue of dine and dash is one it is taking extremely seriously.

It has begun a survey of members to gather more data to help it understand more about the crime and the impact it’s having.

But chief executive Kate Nicholls reiterated the need for business owners to report to police any occasion when they’re left out of pocket.

She added: “Any customers walking out of restaurants without paying is simply unacceptable and shows a complete lack of respect towards businesses and teams that work incredibly hard to provide guests with good service, good food and good experiences.

“We would encourage any operators who experience walkouts to report it to the police.”

In June cafe owner Anna Carpenter shared CCTV images on social media after a group guzzled £60 worth of food and drink from her business Cafe No 35 in Canterbury and then left without paying.

Speaking at the time, the independent business owner described it as a blow in an already difficult climate.

She said: “So many venues have closed across the country and it is quite frightening the impact that all of these issues, certainly since the pandemic, have had on the industry.

“We’re just doing the best we can to stay in business so for somebody to steal from us hurts and affects all of the staff. It’s really upsetting.”

Oliver’s bar and restaurant in Rochester is, as per police advice, well covered by excellent CCTV. Its computer system also takes credit card details when customers make online reservations.

But alongside this, explains manager Carla Helyia, the popular venue is exploring other ways in which it can protect itself from anyone who may be tempted to be dishonest.

For the venue’s bottomless brunch events - which come with prosecco, cocktails or soft drinks depending on the choice people make when booking - customers are given colour-coded wristbands on entry to prevent, for example, someone who paid for soft drinks trying to then order something more expensive.

“It’s just preventative” she explained. “We have just started it recently.

“It’s just incase.”

Soaring rates of theft

With data arguably in its infancy the exact nature of the crime - and its triggers - are perhaps still being understood.

But nationally, other types of theft are soaring.

The country is said to be facing a ‘shoplifting epidemic’.

In 2023 the number of shoplifting offences recorded by police in England and Wales rose to their highest level in 20 years with more than 430,000 crimes reported.

In Kent, shoplifting offences rose from 12, 202 in 2022 to 14,961 last year according to ONS data.

The cost of living crisis - directly or indirectly - has been suggested as a driving force while the British Retail Consortium has put the cost to retailers at more than £1.8 billion.

But eating without paying and shoplifting goods are not the only thefts ticking up.

Also on a stready rise is the crime of ‘bilking’ - in which motorists take fuel but drive off without paying.

While perhaps far from a new act, offences have steadily increased across the country since the pandemic and when the cost of living crisis ‘kicked in’.

Last year, 971 reports of people failing to pay at the pumps in the county were made to police.

It had been 1,116 in 2022 and 752 the year before that - although like ‘dine and dash’ - industry experts say the actual figure is sure to be far higher as not all incidents are reported.

Is dine and dash the new shoplifting?

In the case of dine and dash, numerous reasons have been floated as possible triggers - including rising inflation, the effect the Covid pandemic has had on the way in which diners interact with restaurants and staff and the introduction of menu and payment apps that can make our dining experience a little less personal than it once was.

In fact advice on the Met office website, which specifically advises eateries on how best to avoid becoming a victim of dine and dash suggests restaurateurs meet and greet every customer because ‘a high level of customer care and attention’ makes potential thieves less likely to leave without paying.

It adds: “Encourage staff to pay attention to your customers, make good eye contact and engage in polite conversation.

“The better the customer care, the less chance of anyone leaving without paying.”

Matthew Scott says he would be keen to see more evidence before drawing any firm conclusions on the factors driving dine and dash crimes in the county but described it as an offence of ‘greed’ and ‘opportunism’ that doesn’t fit with people struggling to feed their families.

“They are making the effort to go and sit there and have an expensive dinner for two hours and then walk away at the end” he added.

“It’s criminal.

“It’s not cost of living if that’s what’s happening.”