WOMEN will be able to escape awkward, creepy and potentially dangerous Tinder dates when a new initiative is rolled out in Wagga’s licensed premises.
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Singles feeling trapped in uncomfortable situations can “Ask For Angela” at any bar or club in the city and staff will help them leave.
The Australian Hotels Association (AHA) revealed Wagga will be the first local government area in the country to officially trial the scheme.
AHA NSW director of liquor and policing John Green said every licensee in the city had agreed to take the Ask For Angela initiative on board.
“They can say that code-word when they don’t feel safe and then bar staff will either call them a taxi or help them leave through a side entrance,” he said.
“There’s been a huge rise in Wagga with people matchmaking on social media and going out on Tinder dates with people they’ve never met.
“A lot of people have found themselves in these uncomfortable situations and we want to be ahead of the trend before anything serious happens.”
More than a quarter of NSW’s unattached admitted to using digital dating platforms like Tinder and Grinder, according to an eHarmony study.
A 20-year-old Griffith woman has spoken of a terrifying encounter she had while using Tinder.
Her date, a 24-year-old male, was giving her a lift home when he locked the car door and persistently asked for sex.
“I told him I wasn’t interested but he just kept asking me,” she said.
“I had to push the issue for at least 10 minutes before he decided to let me go.”
It comes after a young doctor named Angela Jay was repeatedly stabbed and doused in petrol by her Tinder stalker on the state’s Mid North Coast in November 2016.
After weeks of harassment and violent threats, he went to her home and exploded in a frenzy of rage that ended with Ms Hay fighting for her life in hospital.
If you are in need of support, contact the Sexual Assault Helpline on 1800 811 811.
