Wetherspoons, a UK pub chain operating 792 establishments, has implemented a ban on customers playing music aloud or engaging in phone calls on speakerphone. The company stated that the increasing noise was becoming a significant issue for patrons, driving them "nuts."
Customers are now required to set their phones and tablets to silent mode or use earphones. The company indicated that staff will exercise "common sense" in enforcing the new policy. While not the primary intention, managers retain the option to ask customers to leave if they refuse to comply with the ruling.
Wetherspoons, which does not play music in most of its pubs, viewing them as "an oasis of tranquillity and contemplation," has extended this ban to its 44 Lloyds' bars, where music is played in the evenings. The decision follows complaints about "other people's videos and amplified phone conversations."
Recent polling suggests a general public opposition to loud phone use and music playing in public spaces. This move by Wetherspoons comes amid financial challenges for the company, including the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and rising inflation, which have led to higher costs for food, labor, repairs, energy, and business rates. The number of Wetherspoons pubs has also seen a decline over the past decade, falling from a peak of 955 in late 2015.
A rival pub chain, Sam Smiths, maintains a more stringent policy, prohibiting any use of phones or technology and also banning swearing within its establishments.