Latest news with #McGirrs
News18
5 days ago
- News18
Irish Family Awarded Rs 85 Lakh For False ‘Dine And Dash' Accusation
Last Updated: The family said the incident caused great embarrassment, especially because it was shared online. A well-known family from Northern Ireland has won £75,000 (approximately Rs 86.3 lakh) in a legal case after they were wrongly accused of leaving a pub without paying their bill. Peter and Ann McGirr, along with their adult children Peter Jr and Carol, were left embarrassed after a pub in Derbyshire, UK, claimed they hadn't paid for a £150 (over Rs 17,200) meal in July last year. The Horse and Jockey pub in Tideswell posted CCTV photos of the family on Facebook where they claimed that the family walked out without settling their bill for steaks, gammon and drinks. The post also labelled them as 'dine-and-dashers." But it was later revealed that the family had paid in full. A staff member took the money but failed to record the payment properly. According to Daily Mail, the McGirrs are a wealthy and respected family from County Tyrone. They own McGirr Engineering, a successful business worth over £2 million with cash reserves of £1.3 million. A friend of the family told the outlet, 'They are very well known and respected in the Omagh area and are one of the wealthiest families around here. Everybody was very shocked when these allegations were first made because the McGirrs are not short of a pound or two." The family said the incident caused great embarrassment especially because it was shared online. Similar accusations are featured in different newspapers' reports. Barrister Peter Girvan, representing the family in Belfast High Court, explained how the false claim had affected them. 'These articles contained serious and defamatory accusations that the plaintiffs had engaged in dishonest and criminal conduct by deliberately absconding without settling a bill of approximately £150," he said. 'The allegations were entirely false. The plaintiffs had not engaged in any such conduct, and the statements made by the defendants had no factual basis." As part of the settlement, the pub agreed to pay £75,000 in damages to the McGirr family. They also covered the family's legal fees. An apology was also read out in court where the pub admitted the mistake and accepted that the accusations were false. Carol McGirr later shared a message on Facebook, saying: '10 months later… thank god it's all over and our names are cleared. Tip for all our friends and family: don't pay for your food and drink before you eat as this is what can happen… plus use a card otherwise we had [sic] no evidence of payment." According to the BBC, the false posts have now been removed from social media and the pub has admitted that there was 'no basis whatsoever" for the claims.
The Irish Sun
10-05-2025
- Business
- The Irish Sun
Family wrongly accused of pub dine & dash and awarded £75,000 ‘are MILLIONAIRES who rejected pleas to drop lawsuit'
A FAMILY who was wrongly accused of leaving a restaurant without paying the bills have turned out to be millionaires who refused to drop a dine and dash lawsuit. Peter and Ann McGirr, along with their children Peter Jr and Carol, were awarded a whopping £75,000 by the Horse and Jockey pub where the family went for a dinner last year. Advertisement 3 CCTV footage shows the McGirr family having a meal at the Horse and Jockey pub Credit: Facebook / The Horse And Jockey 3 The family seen leaving from the pub restaurant Credit: Facebook / The Horse And Jockey 3 The Horse and Jockey pub in the Peak District Credit: Google Maps They ordered £27 10oz ribeye steaks and two £15.25 Derbyshire gammon steaks, washed down with several real ales and lagers. Soon after they left, the pub posted CCTV footage of the family on Facebook and alleged they left without paying the £150 bill for the fancy dinner. The restaurant even called them out for their shocking behaviour - and the family soon made headlines after being accused of dining and dashing. However, those allegations were later revealed to be false, prompting the family to sue the pub owner. Advertisement read more news The McGirrs had paid their bill in full, but a member of staff at the pub had forgotten to ring the transaction through the till. The pub said that the error was caused by an "inexperienced member of staff" who took a card payment but forgot to put it through the till. The millionaire family sued the pub for libel based on the "serious and defamatory accusations". It is understood that the pub's management settled before evidence was presented - but apologised and acknowledged the distress they caused to the family. Advertisement Most read in The Sun Latest Exclusive Millionaire McGirrs are among the richest people living in County Tyrone. John Watson, the pub's landlord, had to fork out almost £140,000, which included £75,000 in damages and $60,000 in legal costs. Shameless moment 20 Travellers leave restaurant WITHOUT paying £700 bill - as CCTV reveals suspects & cops launch hunt Mr Watson is said to have flown to Belfast to apologise to the McGirrs and even offered them a complement meal and stay at he pub in return for dropping the lawsuit. A source told Advertisement The source said: "A lot of ordinary people might have accepted this. But given the McGirrs' wealth and excellent reputation, that was never going to happen with them. "Their reputation received such a battering they were left with little choice other than to take legal action to restore their name." The family's lawyer said that the pub's claims - and the subsequent news coverage - caused significant damage to the reputation of the family. They told the court: "These articles contained serious and defamatory accusations that the plaintiffs had engaged in dishonest and criminal conduct by deliberately absconding without settling a bill of approximately £150. Advertisement "The allegations were entirely false. The plaintiffs had not engaged in any such conduct, and the statements made by the defendants had no factual basis." A statement issued by the pub last July read: 'We want to sincerely apologise to the people involved because we have now learnt that they did in fact pay for their meal. "There was no dishonesty involved from our staff, it was an honest mistake, but we have dismissed the member of staff responsible for the error." Advertisement
