I haven’t been banned from somewhere for life, but I’m guessing that you have to do something pretty awful and unforgivable to not be let in somewhere for the rest of your life.
Let’s just hope it never happens to me because I’ve been able to avoid that so far.
Why are you banned from somewhere for life?
AskReddit users shared their stories.
1. The library.
“Got banned from my high school library, while I was in school still mind you.
Used the computer there to email mom that I didn’t have practice that night and would need a ride home. Librarian didn’t like that because I wasn’t doing research. She ordered me to stop, I told her, “no, I need to make sure mom knows about today.”, and finished sending the email.
She screamed at me the whole way while I was walking out about how I am never allowed back, basically told her, “good, wasn’t planning on coming back here again anyways.””
2. Noise complaint.
“Got banned from my local target because I pressed on a bunch of squeaky toys all at once and caused a noisy disturbance.”
3. Banned and fired.
“I was banned from a bar I worked at, the same night I got fired.
The owners wife had a friend, who had her bachelorette party at the bar. The bar had hired me because they had already been in LOTS of legal trouble for overserving and other bad things (someone was s**ually a**aulted in the girls bathroom, they needed a woman that could walk in and check on things).
I saw the man sitting at the bar, wearing his winter jacket indoors where everyone else was wearing their “desperate for a lay” skimpy clothes. I noticed the badge that he wore on his belt, mostly hidden. I was doing my job the way I was supposed to.
I cut off a super intoxicated man, after he threw up all over the place. Turns out, he was part of the little party the owners wifes friend was having. She screamed at me in front of staff and customers. She fired me and banned me from the bar for life. I smiled and left, knowing what would happen.
As they had already had multiple warnings, they were 1 warning away from being shut down. Guess what happened? Yup, psycho washed off the X’s I had put on Dr**ky’s hands, and told the waitress to serve him anyway. Cop busted them for intentional overserve, they lost their liquor license AGAIN and got a huge huge fine. That was the last day they were open. They had to sell the place.
That life time ban? Well, the bar d**d that night, so turns out it was for the life of the bar, not my life. I was back in there as soon as the new owners had their grand opening.”
4. I’m back!
“I was banned from a grocery store for shop lifting when I was a kid.
I ended up working there like a year or 2 later.”
5. Thief.
“Sears.
I stole a pair of sunglasses 40 years ago.”
6. A weird one.
“The prison I used to work at.
I had tried numerous times to receive therapy to treat PTSD I gained while working the job and thanks to the HR taking their vacation was not able to get it and the administrative assistant warden told me, quite literally, “officers don’t need therapy and if they do then they aren’t cut out to be officers” and refused to help me find help.
When they learned (somehow) that I had sought therapy on my own, they attempted to place me on “indefinite administrative leave” citing “officer has conducted themselves in a manner unfitting their position”
So yeah. I sued them and quit and they banned me for life… from their prison.”
7. Lots of complaints about this place.
“Planet Fitness.
I tried to cancel my contract (this was the 10$ plan which said I could cancel anytime) with them and they said I had to pay 150$ to cancel for god knows that reason. I called my bank to tell them to not let them withdraw from my account since they had my checking account information. My bank said they have multiple situations happen with planet fitness about their Unusual financial practices.
2 months later I got a letter from planet fitness saying I’m banned from ever signing up with them again. Planet fitness is a POS corporation.”
8. Wow.
“Went to a holiday resort, got my whole family banned for life.
Went to the kids play room, did not properly clean up the legos.
Manager, instead of cleaning up legos, reviewed the security footage of all kids entering the play room and discovered me. Then reviewed the front desk footage for the last week until he saw the family. Then looked at the check in records to discover which condo we were in. Then phoned our condo mid dinner and demanded we all front the front desk right now.
At the front desk, the manager explained what I did, and pointed to a sign listing many rules about the playroom. Mum told me off and sent me to clean the legos, I said to the manager”sorry, I forgot.”, and went to clean up the legos. Something about this pi**ed the guy off. He said not to, because we are now banned and had to leave. Mum seemed to think that was unreasonable, and refused to leave without a refund.
The manager became unhinged threatened to call the police, then started accusing me of k**ling a duck. Mum looked at me in fright, I said “no way, you know I would not do that”. She questioned the man for further details. He said I threw a stone and hit a flying duck, which fell into the lake, so there is no body. She expressed doubt about the story. He then started making up some other weird accusations, something about s** with another boy.
We got out of their the next day. I never forgot to clean up legos again in my life.”
9. Wrong person.
“I’m banned from a cafe in a town in North Wales; neither of which I’d been to prior to this experience.
I walked in and the guy behind the counter said “You! I’ve told you before! You’re banned!”
I said, confusedly “I’ve never been here before”, but he just pointed at the door, so I turned around and left.
Almost 30 years ago.”
10. Legend.
“My uncle got us banned from a diner in the 1990s.
He did their “eat a 72 ounce steak in under an hour” six times in two weeks.”
I know for a fact he does not regret it.”
11. You’re out!
“I was banned for life from attending Late Night with David Letterman because I canceled my reservation.
I guess it was hard to find people for the audience in freaking New York City The intern who I talked to was very serious: “You should know if you cancel you will never be allowed back. Ever!”
12. You did the right thing.
“In college, at the local college book store, I attempted to sell some books back to the store.
After hearing what the buyback value was, a guy behind me said he’d pay $20 more for my books (he was taking the same course the next semester sand the store’s mark up would by 100%).
The bookstore owner warned me if I sold to this other dude, I’d be banned for life. I told him money makes the world go round and took my extra twenty.”
13. Never come back.
“I’m banned from a restaurant in Colorado. Probably not for life, but they did say never come back.
Basically I got really bad service and refused to tip the waitress because of it, and she lost her s**t.
My food sat in the window, I had to get up to find her, three times, to get a drink refill, and to get my check. All because she kept stopping to chat with her friends, or this one other customer that was there. My food was almost cold by the time I got it.
When I refused outright to tip her, she threw a tantrum and told me not to ever come back because she would refuse to serve me.”
14. Weird.
“In 2001 or thereabouts I got banned from the small Chinese carry-out restaurant next door to the Blockbuster video in Zachary, LA.
I had just started dating a girl and her mom offered to buy us carryout for dinner if we went to pick it up. She wrote down the order and handed it off to us and away we went.
When I got to the front of the line I produced the slip of paper only to see it said s**t like “flied lice” and “don’t forget the ching-chong chopsticks”. I was flummoxed when I saw all this and the cashier assumed I had trouble reading, snatched the list from me and began to read it. A few seconds later they were yelling at me to get out and never to come back.
I wonder if their sesame chicken was any good.”
15. Trespasser.
“The big outdoor amphitheater in St Louis.
There was a Pearl Jam show back in 1998 my buddy and I went to. We had extra tickets so he held our place in line while I went to sell the extra tickets. Apparently, even if you’re selling rhem for below face value its considered scalping there.
They had me get in the back of a pickup truck and drove off somewhere, wrote me up but didn’t fine me, took the tickets in my pockets but not the one I had hidden in my sock, took me to the front entrance, and said if I ever came back again for any reason I’d be arrested for trespassing.
I watched them drive away, cut through the parking lot, found my friend in line, switched shirts and took off my hat and glasses, walked in right past the sheriff that said he’d arrest me, and went to one of the best shows I’d ever seen.”
16. Sorry about that.
“I have a friend who puked all over the Maury Povich Show shuttle bus and was subsequently banned from all Maury Show-related activities.”
17. Oops.
“A local non-name brand dvd store when I was a kid. I tripped and knocked over a shelf of dvds near the entrance.
Banned for life.
The store closed a few years later so it ended up being for the duration of their life.”
18. Hahaha.
“My college roommate got banned from Target for putting Wet Floor signs next to the 50 Shades of Grey display.”
19. No snoring!
“I snored in a hostel in Germany. Apparently I am now banned from Germany.
At least that is what some random dude told me in Germany.
I am not sure this is binding, but I don’t want to chance it.”
20. Rude.
“I stayed at the Fountain Park Motel in sheboygan Wisconsin and found bedbugs in my bed.
I complained to the front desk and received a lifetime ban. If anyone with my last name tries to get a room, they insist all guests come to the front desk to prove they are not me with a valid ID. They have a photocopy of my driver’s license in the office to ensure I am in no one else’s rooms.
I was not impolite, not loud or nasty about it, I’m the type who feels bad for being an inconvenience when it’s absolutely not my fault.”
21. The last laugh.
“I’m banned from Woolworth’s in my home town, not for anything I did I was just banned by association because some other kids were being kicked out and they said I was with them.
They were just being smarta**es, I’d never met them before, but the security guy told me to leave. He said we were banned for life and should never return.
Went back that same afternoon and continued to shop there until I moved away from the town in 1998. Never had any issues. I don’t think some random security guard on a power trip really has much say in who they can and cannot ban from their premises.
That Woolworths is now a Vision Express and Women’s Clothing store (according to Google Maps), not sure who has the last laugh here.”
22. Over the line.
“My wife and I are banned from a store by my high school.
Why? Did we destroy merchandise? No. Did we steal merchandise? No. Did we create a secret hidden puppy fighting ring? No.
We told our friends (and her boyfriend at the time) having a tea party would be more fun currently than what we were doing. So when we entered the store to “shop,” my wife and I grabbed some stuffed animals, found a some tea pots and cups, and then found kids furniture and made a tea party.
All of us got thrown out but last time I entered to buy candy for something I was yelled out by the manager. Later my wife entered to get chap stick before our date and also got chased out. So tea parties are bad apparently.”
23. Don’t go back.
“I just got a self imposed banned from Russia.
Apparently you can’t just leave a car there otherwise you get a very strongly worded letter from the government.
Not being able to afford £20k fine and I’m too busy to be imprisoned I think ill just avoid going back.”
24. Mom!
“I’ll answer for my mom; she was banned from my high school!
I graduated a few years ago so it’s something to look back on and laugh at but at that time, it was the worst situation of my life lol. I was being picked on by two girls in my art class (ironically my sociophobia drew me a lot of attention) and my mom thought it would be a great idea to barge into the classroom while it was in session and yell and curse at the girls.
I think what makes it even better (worse) is that she yelled at the wrong table of people at first! Of course she figured that out and directed her anger at the right girls but by this time I was crying as I was standing behind her outside of the classroom. I don’t think I’ll ever forget how terrified every one of my classmates looked as this 6’2” woman was interrupting their first hour of the day.
The principal ended up coming with the school’s police officer and as we were being escorted through the halls my mom was yelling at the principal (later that day my sister told me should could hear her all the way on the second floor of the school ?) and he managed to slip in that she would not be allowed back on the premises indefinitely. After that I was homeschooled for a few months and then transitioned into alternative schooling.”
Have you ever been banned from somewhere?
If so, what happened?
Tell us your stories in the comments!
