What to do if you eat in a cafe and find that you have no money

Let's imagine a situation: you came to your favorite place and ate a wonderful lunch. The waiter brings the bill, you reach into your pocket and find nothing there. It doesn't matter if the money was stolen from you or you forgot it. But there is nothing to pay. Imagination paints scary pictures, like in a movie: now you will be forced to wash dishes or toilets until you work off your debt. The reality is not at all so frightening if both sides act within the legal framework.

What do you do

You hardly have the illusion that lack of money is a good reason to leave and not pay the bill. And so it is.

Unwillingness to pay most often qualifies as petty theftAdministrative Code of the Russian Federation Article 7.27. Petty theft. For this, you face either a fine, or administrative arrest, or compulsory work.

Olga Shirokova, Leading Lawyer, European Legal Service

So you still need to pay, and this can be done in different ways. If you are an adept cash, you do not have a bank card and you have no one to ask to transfer funds to your account, you can choose one of the following options:

• Write a receipt. In it you indicate your personal and contact information, the deadline for the fulfillment of obligations, the amount of debt. Accordingly, when you bring the money, take this paper.
• Leave as a pledge some valuable thing or document. Keep in mind this is a right, not an obligation. Nobody should force you to do this.

What staff can do

Most often, the institution is interested in a peaceful settlement of the issue. Especially if you are not trying to secretly sneak away, but you yourself offer solutions.

As we have already found out, the administration of the cafe has the right to demand payment of the bill. Another question is how she does it. For example, employees cannot keep you in the establishment by force. If this happens, call the police.

But there are important nuances here:

• You do not refuse to pay the bill. Inform both the administration of the cafe and the police if you do call them.
• You are negotiating peacefully, do not dismiss you, do not brawl. Otherwise, you yourself are breaking the law. Your violent behavior could be considered bullyingAdministrative Code of the Russian Federation Article 20.1. Petty hooliganism. And if you are rowdy, the staff of the establishment may detain you before arrival. policeto stop illegal actions. In doing so, they must use force commensurate withRF Criminal Code Article 38. Causing harm during arrest of a person who has committed a crime your violations. That is, you can not beat you if you shout too loudly and actively gesticulate.

What to remember

• You must pay for the ordered dishes if everything is fine: no foreign matter and so on.
• If there is no money, agree with the staff of the establishment on what conditions you can pay the bill later.
• If personnel use force, call the police.