Stevenage Newvu now closed - refunds available for customers

Nine customers told us they had paid for bookings that could not go ahead or had gift cards that became unusable when the eSports and gaming venue in Stevenage town centre closed for the final time.

In total, these customers had been left more than £500 out of pocket - the total of the money they had paid to Newvu or had remaining in unused gift card credit.

All seven customers we spoke to who had bookings cancelled had tried to contact Newvu, but had not received any refunds when we first spoke to them.

Newvu's co-founder, Andrew Bishop, has previously told the Comet they took out a ten-year lease on their 88 Queensway venue. (Image: Newsquest)

After we contacted Newvu about the problems these customers had been experiencing, a spokesperson gave us the following statement: "NEWVU regrets the closure of our store in Stevenage, however, as previously stated, this is due to the changing economic climate.

"We have become aware of several bookings for which the refunds were not processed correctly and are doing everything we can to resolve these issues.

"If you have a booking for which you have not received a refund please get in touch with team@letsgraft.com and we will process your request within 48 hours."

Some customers claimed they had been waiting more than a month for a refund, including one who was promised a refund "immediately" and another who had been told it would arrive within seven days.

The bookings we have been told about include multiple children's parties where the customers were not informed that the venue had closed - and even, in one case, received a reminder about their booking on the morning that it was due to take place. They claimed to have arrived to find the shutters down.

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One customer who had emailed team@letsgraft.com confirmed to us that they have now been offered a refund or gift card for a different local business.

Newvu is only offering refunds to customers who contact them via the specific email address.

At least two further customers who previously emailed different addresses or contacted Newvu via social media have still not been issued with a refund or received any response to their queries.

Newvu had a virtual reality gaming set-up in their Stevenage venue. (Image: Newsquest)

We heard from one customer, Michelle, who had a birthday party go ahead at the venue as late as June 8, which she described as "excellent".

The venue closed on June 14.

It is no longer possible to book for the Stevenage location and customers who feel they are still owed refunds are urged to email team@letsgraft.com with evidence of their booking.

Newvu was Stevenage FC's official eSports partner for the 2022/23 season, which finished in May, and Stevenage FC confirmed to us that their partnership has now concluded.