Customer banned for life?

Occasionally it's necessary to refuse business and fire customers, but banned for life?

A complaining Tim Horton's customer in St. Andrews New Brunswick has received legal notice that he is no longer allowed on the premises of either location in town. Ouch! The former customer is now brewing his own decaf at home instead of using Tim Horton's drive through.

Now maybe the franchise owner had good reason for banning the customer - disruptive behaviour is not good for business and needs to be stopped in the best interest of both employees and customers. But managing the fallout can be a bigger challenge. The customer has become an international celebrity and champion for better customer service as the story gets played out by the media. The owner seems an unfriendly tyrant defending bad product and poor service. He certainly hasn't done a good job of the PR.

Maybe a more tactful, diplomatic resolution would have been less provocative and provided less fodder for the consumer to go public.