"I canceled my restaurant reservation a week in advance, but they called it a 'no-show' and kept my 100,000 won deposit" [What Do You Think?]

[The Financial News] A story has emerged about a customer who was unable to get a refund for a reservation deposit after canceling a restaurant booking a week in advance due to his mother-in-law's sudden hospitalization.

On the 18th, Joongang Tongyang Broadcasting Company (JTBC)'s 'Case Chief' introduced the story of Person A, a man in his 40s, who canceled his restaurant reservation a week before the scheduled visit for unavoidable reasons but did not receive his deposit back.
Person A, who described himself as the head of a family with two children, said he had recently made a reservation at an All-You-Can-Eat Galbi Franchise Restaurant for a year-end family gathering.
He explained, "The restaurant told me that reservations fill up quickly at the end of the year and asked me to send a 100,000 won deposit in advance. So, I sent the deposit ten days before the event and confirmed the reservation."
He continued, "A few days later, my mother-in-law slipped on an icy road and was hospitalized, so I had no choice but to cancel the family gathering. I visited the restaurant in person a week before the reservation date to explain the situation, but the restaurant said, 'Since you canceled suddenly, we can't refund your deposit.'"

The restaurant told Person A, "Don't you know what a deposit is for? This is exactly why we require one." In response, Person A said, "What do you mean? I told you my mother-in-law was hospitalized. It was an unavoidable accident."
However, the restaurant replied, "How are you going to take responsibility for all the group reservations we lost at year-end because of you?" Person A responded, "Why would all the group reservations be lost just because my family canceled? Why should I be responsible for that? There was still a week left. It's not like I canceled on the day of the event."
The restaurant then said, "That's it. Do you know what this is called? It's a no-show. You should take responsibility," and refused to return the 100,000 won deposit.
Person A expressed his frustration, saying, "It wasn't even a last-minute cancellation, but they called it a no-show and said we had to bear the loss because they couldn't take other customers due to our reservation. There was still a week left before the reservation date, and someone else could have booked in the meantime. Did I really do something so wrong?"

Kwangmin Lee, a psychiatrist who heard the story, commented, "Both sides have their own points. However, the concept of a deposit means you accept some loss if you can't keep the promise, so it's understandable that you might not get the full deposit back."
He added, "But why is there such a lack of flexibility? Couldn't the restaurant just take another customer? It seems the owner is being too rigid about the business."
Attorney Park Ji-hoon stated, "A deposit is legally similar to a contract security. You should consider the 100,000 won as being held in trust. If the cancellation was on the day or the day before, there might be an issue, but a week's notice should be sufficient."
He continued, "If you approach it with a bit more flexibility, popular places will definitely get rebooked."
Attorney Jiyoul Yang also remarked, "It's hard to understand why the restaurant is being so inflexible, especially since the customer explained the special circumstances in person. This wasn't a no-show. The owner is being too harsh."
newssu@fnnews.com Kim Soo-yeon Reporter