Can a Nail Salon Charge a Fee for Fat?
By Kate Sullivan, Allure magazine
A local news report out of DeKalb County, Georgia kind of made our jaws drop. A customer at a nail salon was surprised to learn when she settled her bill that she'd been charged an extra $5 for her manicure-pedicure-because she's overweight.
Related: Are All Women Freaked Out About Fat?
The manager of the salon, Natural Nails, said to the WSBTV reporter that she regularly adds a $5 fee for overweight patrons, so that she can supplement future costly repairs to the salon's $2,500 pedicure chairs, which she says have a weight limit of 200 pounds. Now, if that weight is part of the chair's official description, the manager can't be held responsible for its limits. And if the additional fee had been on the price list posted on the wall or if a customer exceeding the weight limit was refused service, then the management would be within their rights to do as they may, however crappy it seemed.
Related: Is Your Job Making You Fat?
But stealthily charging more after the fact is simply not a fair policy. Natural Nails' price list low-balled the actual cost of services for some customers. The one in question, Michelle Fonville, was able to argue her way out of the surprise charge, but the salon manager told her to take her future business elsewhere.
This story reminded us of a large male friend of ours, who has broken chairs in restaurants and now checks out date locations to make sure they have booths before making dinner reservations. So we don't doubt that the stress of an overweight body could do damage to pedicure chairs. But our friend never had to pay for a chair, and so long as he's not intentionally or clumsily destroying one, he shouldn't have to. When you run a business (even a small one), equipment repairs are a fact of life, and should already be factored in to the price of services. Over time, chairs break, floor tiles crack, paint chips-and the onus for fixing the wear and tear can't be placed on specific individual customers.
What do you think of the salon's policy?
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Photo Credit: WWD
