Complaint filed after diners charged 12 euros to hang their bags on hooks at the table

The Facua consumers' organisation in Spain has denounced the Wakame Japanese restaurant in Ibiza after a woman complained of being charged to use a hook, offered by the waitress, to hang her handbag on the side of the table.

Facua decided to report the establishment to the regional government of the Balearic Islands, requesting that the case be investigated and a disciplinary case be opened against it.

According to the customer, she agreed to use the hook after the waitress insisted. "She kindly suggested that we hang our bags on a hook on the table. We declined her offer but ended up accepting when she insisted." The surprise came with the bill, which indicated that the restaurant had charged them 12 euros for the use of the hook.

The restaurant stated that they had started charging for the hook "after many customers had carelessly taken it with them, thinking it was free". The establishment added that it is an "optional service" and that the 12 euros are included in the bill as a "deposit" - once the hook is returned, "the amount is deducted from the final payment, unless the customer wants to take it as a souvenir".

However, Facua stated that "this practice is abusive and therefore contrary to state and regional legislation regulating consumer rights", not because of the deposit but because "of the fact that the establishment fails to inform customers in advance that the item is neither a courtesy service nor a promotional gift, even though it carries the restaurant's logo. Instead, it is added to the bill along with the meal unless the customer explicitly refuses."

The consumer association said that, in order to be able to legally charge for this, the Wakame restaurant should inform of the cost of the hook when it offers it and let the customer decide whether to use it, "as it can be interpreted as a gift".