Koi Koi restaurant closes and 'to repay deposits'

The business ceased trading at the beginning of May

The owner of the restaurant Koi Koi says he will repay nearly £2,000 he owes, including customers' deposits.

The business in St Peter Port, launched six years ago, ceased trading earlier this month, with its social media accounts and website also going offline.

Some people who had paid in advance told the BBC they had had difficulty getting in contact with bosses.

Owner Dom Watson said the closure was a "last-minute" decision and it had been a difficult time for him.

'No replies to emails'

Carmel Holdings Ltd, the company that owns the building, said it was unaware of the restaurant's shutting until several days afterwards.

A number of people have since spoken out about being owed money they had paid as deposits for events.

Mr Watson confirmed to the BBC that he owed five customers a total of £1,850 - money he said he was planning to repay.

Chloe Freitas had been organising a hen do for her friend which was supposed to take place in the venue in August.

Chloe Freitas says she has contacted Koi Koi but has not received a reply

She said: "I've been emailing the Koi Koi email about it, when it first came to light, to ask what was going on, but I haven't had a reply.

"I recently just emailed again but not had a reply."

She said she managed to get hold of a personal email of the owner and tried to politely ask for her deposit back but she had not received a reply on that either, as well as calling the Koi Koi number and a phone number for the manager.

She said: "We've had no contact whatsoever."

Citizens Advice Guernsey (CAG) said that such situations did occur but it was available to help.

CAG chief executive Ali Marquis said: "Our advice would be to keep any documentation that you've got, any contracts."

The charity also said anyone affected and concerned should contact Trading Standards.

Ms Marquis added: "It is very important for people to be aware that there is no guarantee that you are going to get your money back, unfortunately."

CAG said it had received several groups of inquiries regarding similar situations at separate businesses in the last year.