Tanya Powell, with the two officers who arrived at the pub (Picture: Tanya Powell)

A pub row broke out ending with the police arriving after a customer was 2p short for her drinks order.

Tanya Powell was out celebrating her 46th birthday with a group of around 40 friends and relatives, when one of them was told she couldn’t take her drinks away from the bar because she hadn’t paid enough money.

She was told to come back when she had the last 2p, which she did, although she wasn’t happy about it.

However, pub staff said on her return she was rude and threatening so they called police.


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When officers arrived at the Packet Station in Falmouth, Cornwall, they calmed things down without making any arrests.

Sarah Hibbert, one of the people at the party, said: ‘It was just terrible customer service.

‘To call the police out on something like this was a waste of police time and a something that could easily have been avoided.

‘What they did was petty and pathetic.’

Sarah praised the response of police, who she said were friendly and level-headed, but added: ‘It should never have escalated.

The Packet Station in Cornwall (Picture: Tanya Powell)

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Wetherspoon’s said some members of the group threatened the manager – who in their view was right to call the police.

Spokesman Eddie Gershon said: ‘The police were called because a group of people involved in this incident threatened the manager and staff.

‘The manager made the right decision to call the police and as far as we are concerned the group were out of order.

Police at the pub (Picture: Sarah Hibbert)

‘They say that the police were called because one of the group was two pence short at the bar.

‘They fail to say that the individual was then served when she returned with the correct money for her drink, but was rude and threatening to a member of bar staff.’