Re cineworld : IS THIS LEGAL

I am not getting wound up by this at all I just want a reasonable answer to justify their actions that all. but it does not look like it is forthcoming:(


and alerting them to this thread means they will get feedback on what people think of them thats all:)
 
no not at all you are entitled to your opinion:). it why I did this thred to find out what the score is they have s sign but people have been taking their own food in for two years now. there is no sign saying they can search people

I am not diabetic but what if I was then I can take a sugar fix of my choosing in and not something I would wnat to broadcast that just me.


I felt like a crinimal not for having drink taken from me but th emanner in which they spoke to me
 
Perhaps a lot of this should be moved to another thread, entitled "Should stores properly display T&Cs".

Flyboy, I know your whole argument is if they don't display the T&Cs clearly, they cant say "sold subject to T&Cs" and then impose all these conditions randomly.

But *all* stores say "subject to standard T&Cs" on receipts, but I've never ever seen big signs up all around Tesco detailing them? If other shops get away with it, why are we suddenly picking on Cineworld?

Have you taken this argument up with every other venue, store or service provider you've dealt with?
 
The issue with CW is two-fold:-
  • It goes against the previous situation where you could take in what you liked. (In my early unlimited years, I sat behind two girls sharing a family-sized takeaway pizza. There's no way that was smuggled in. In an art-house film, salad bowls were obviously more common).
  • CW offer the Unlimited card, which complicates this issue somewhat - both because it modifies a pre-existing contract, and because paying 3-6 times your "ticket price" for your refreshments seems a little unreasonable.
 
I'm sorry, but when did I say I have a law degree?

I was commenting on my own experiences of those places. I went on the London Eye a few months ago, I had a bag with me and I wasn't told it was going to be searched until I got to the point in the queue where the security officers were.

I visited the Science Museum the same day, they didn't have any notices up.

I'm not going to suggest whether this is legal or not, I was just giving my own personal experiences.

I'm also certainly not claiming they have any rights to search you, I think the only people that have that are the police. But if they ask to look in your bag, and you hand it over, then theres not much you can do about it after. I think the term is something like implied consent.
 
I believe the main reason why a lawyer has not posted on here is because the legal issues have been answered in brilliant examples of plain english by many of the other contributors.

I can remember discussing situations concerning the issues around this sort of thing when I did my law degree. I believe customers have an implied licence to enter the premises and would imagine in a cinema situation that when you have bought a ticket/paid for an unlimited card etc. you then have a contractual licence to use the facilities at the cinema - namely viewing the film(s) that you have bought the ticket for or are using the unlimited card to watch, use the toilets etc.

Licences can be revoked at any time and once revoked you are supposed to leave. Due to the fact a licence is such a limited ( I prefer the term "crappy") thing you really are reliant upon the will of the occupier of the premises/his 'agents' (using a convenient label for managers/employees and a whole host of others) to continue your licence. Really and truly if they decide to make searching bags to ensure people are not about to engage in a little copyright infringement activity or whatever a condition of the licence then if you don't agree to it they are more than entitled to revoke the licence and ask you to get out. I think the phrase "having you over a barrel" or something similar was used earlier.

I would imagine that given the importance that our law places on protecting the intellectual property rights of others, a cinema searching people's bags to ensure they are not about to illegally make a recording of a copyrighted film would be viewed as a legitimate condition of a licence in the context.

HOWEVER, I'm not sure about all this confiscating of food business although wouldn't be surprised if the courts would view a business trying to prevent loss of its profits and preventing people from consuming food and drink not bought from the premises a legitimate aim as well.
 
They can stop you at any point when your behaviour is suspicious, on exit, or outside the shop - as long as they have reasonable justification.

If you are caught on CCTV putting gooRAB into your own bag, rather than the supermarket trolley, that would probably be grounRAB for suggesting that you might be intending not to pay, but they may wait for you to try to leave before apprehending you.

If you are caught on CCTV trying to remove an anti-theft device, I suspect they would apprehend you there & then, as long as they had video evidence.
 
Yes I sohuldnt take my own food and drink but they have never done anything about it for two years surely that renders there T and C invalid?
 
And they say the art of ironic sarcasm is dead.



You must have had your eyes shut, because both of these places have loaRAB of signs explaining their security procedures as the public enter the side of County Hall (the ticketing hall for the London Eye) and at the entrance of The Science Museum, just as you go through the glass doors and at the table where you place bags for inspection. The security staff also tell you why they search your bag.



You implied in your post that they can do what they like and get away with it.

Implied consent, unfortunately does not exist in these circumstances. If someone asks you to hand over your bag for inspection, without the authority to do so, it is, at best, coercion.
 
I want to thank everyone for posting on this thread, no matter what the outcome is (
which i believe will be diddly squat
it appears this is something that they may need to address if someoone does indeed take legal action. I do think they will only clamp down for a while then go back to the old ways again. just think it down to the credit crunch, but then during batman film their sales of their own food and drink were sky high.
 
WOW this is a long thread, and I've taken the time to read about 90% of it (well, up to page 7 anyway!), and my only comment is, whether CW were correct or incorrect in searching your bag, the very least they should have done is to have carried that out with tact and diplomacy, and something that is missing sadly in this world, politeness.

There just is no excuse for rude or impolite behaviour. Considering how much cinemas are supposedly losing out to downloaRAB, home DVRAB etc, you would think they would be trying to entice people back with, if not decent prices, at least decent service, but they seem to be adopting a version of the Michael O'Leary mantra. He constantly drones on about "if you pay a Euro for a seat on Ryanair don't expect decent service." Seems (some) cinemas nowadays adopt the position of "if you want to pay overinlfated, exorbitant prices to see a movie in an environment where you may not even be able to watch it in peace, dont expect decent service".
Something to be learned here?
 
Searching of bags is quite clearly a condition of entry. You are within your rights to refuse, and then you don't get in - simple as that.

Anybody can search you if you allow them to.
 
Was that the one near Harbour Lights? Because a similar thing happened to a friend of mine actually.

I know they have to be alert in terms of recording equipment, but subjecting people to searches like that and confiscating their belongings until the end of the film is incredibly belittling. There's a difference between being vigilant and being degrading and power-hungry.
 
Back
Top