Wednesday 21 July 2021

Do you leave a tip?

As a Brit, I find tipping hard. I never expected to receive tips when I worked in a bar, cafe and night club. I did get them though, usually just loose change, so I'm always happy to do that when I pay by cash, which doesn't happen too much at the moment.

I resent being asked if I want to add a tip and I loathe where a tip is included in the bill and I have been known to tell them to remove it, because I feel they shouldn't be telling me how much I think they were worth, doing the job they were paid to do, especially when there is a service charge included also.

In South Africa we tipped all the time. Quite a lot of people only get paid in tips, so regardless of the quality of service they offered, one always tipped. If the server went above and beyond then the tip was larger, we always left the tip in cash and on the table.

In Dubai the cost of living is much higher and whilst everyone is on a salary, there is no minimum wage and again tips are very welcomed. However the service can be poorer and I wouldn't leave a tip if the server had done less than they were supposed to do, so slow service, messing up orders would mean no tip.

In both countries when I tipped I would leave some for the waiting staff and some for the kitchen. At the hairdressers/nail bar, I'd leave a tip for the stylist, the hair washer, floor sweeper, nail technician and the person who offered and made the tea.

We're back in the UK now. Today 5 men delivered and unloaded a container, unpacked it all, assembled all the furniture and removed the packaging. They were at the house 4 hours, plus their return journey time to London, another 4 hours. We paid £6,500 for the service which included dismantling, packing and loading back in Dubai. We tipped the guys in Dubai £5 each (there were 8 of them) we tipped the guys in the UK £5 each, that's 1% of the bill. When I do tip anywhere I always leave 10%, but I wasn't prepared to leave a tip of £650 and I was reluctant to leave a tip at all as the removal company tried to charge me and additional £875 for storage charges as they couldn't get a crew to deliver within an acceptable time frame, yet I still tipped the crew because it wasn't their fault.

I hate having to make a decision on who and how to tip. Do you find it an easy decision to make?

6 comments:

  1. I think it really depends on the service given to whether I tip or not x #pocolo

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  2. Before Covid hit I used to tip if we were eating out but now we usually pay everything on the card it doesn't happen often. I think the only time I do now is if we order from the local takeaway, they only take cash on delivery so round it up to the nearest £5 or £10 depending on how much it is and tell the delivery person to keep the change x

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  3. I think tipping can be a minefield but I will always tip generously if the service has been good. I don't like it when the service charge is automatically added, I would rather decide myself #pocolo

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