DEPARTMENT store chain John Lewis gave weather forecasters an icy blast, claiming "inaccurate and exaggerated" warnings helped knock £1.32m off sales.
The chain, which has a branch in Southampton's WestQuay centre, pointed to overly pessimistic forecasts on Thursday of last week, when potential shoppers were braced for heavy snow but got little more than rain and sleet.
Sales in the week to last Saturday were 3.4 per cent lower than 2004, with the cold snap reducing business by 14 per cent on the Tuesday and nine per cent on the following two days.
Barry Gromett of the Meteorological Office said: "Our main priority is to issue the forecast as we see it at the time.
"If we feel there is a problem with the weather that could cause infrastructure issues and safety problems then that has to be our focus."
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