00:00Six in ten people now believe tipping in the UK is starting to feel more American,
00:06with gratuities becoming less of a thank you and more of an expectation.
00:10What was once an optional gesture at the end of a good meal is increasingly appearing as a standard line
00:16on the bill,
00:17prompting some diners to wonder whether we're quietly importing a US-style system
00:21where tipping feels compulsory rather than earned.
00:24In America, you pretty much depend entirely on tips for your income because the wage level is so low.
00:33It's not as bad here, but it's pretty much minimum wage.
00:38I don't think we're going to get to the American state where it's 25%, I think, out there,
00:43their service charge, for example, where it's generally much less here.
00:48Nearly half of Britain say they feel annoyed or pressured when a service charge is added automatically,
00:53yet almost the same proportion still go ahead and pay it.
00:57It suggests that while many of us might question it privately,
01:00social discomfort and the desire to avoid awkwardness often win out when the bill arrives.
01:05You see a menu and you see what prices your steak and chips are or whatever and how much your
01:10wine is,
01:11and nobody ever gets a bill that's less than they think it's going to be anyway.
01:15That's just the way our minds work.
01:17There's always more.
01:18But when you see that a service charge has been added, it suddenly increases it,
01:23and then you want to give it as well, if you understand the difference between the two.
01:28You know, it just feels not like you're being ripped off,
01:32but certainly what you thought the bill would be is suddenly much higher because of the service charge.
01:39And unless you ask the restaurant what that service charge is for,
01:43you don't necessarily know that's not going towards their utility bills or refurbishment or whatever it may be,
01:50their overheads.
01:52You don't know that's going directly.
01:54It should do, but you don't know that it's going directly to the people that are serving you.
01:58The research also highlights a clear generational divide.
02:01A third of 18 to 29-year-olds say they're happy to pay a service charge,
02:06and a quarter believe it should always be included.
02:08Younger diners, many of whom have worked in hospitality themselves,
02:12are more likely to see tipping as part of supporting staff in a challenging industry.
02:17Older diners tend to be more traditionist.
02:19So older people tend to be, they scrutinise the bill more.
02:25They sort of want to pay for service if it's good service,
02:28whereas I think younger people sort of see almost like a moral obligation.
02:33Behavioural psychologists say the tipping moment is more complex than it looks.
02:37When the card machine is turned around with suggested percentages already displayed,
02:42diners can feel subtly judged.
02:44Decisions are often driven less by the quality of the meal
02:47and more by social norms, identity and the fear of appearing ungenerous.
02:52It feels awkward.
02:54So I think there's a lot of implicit pressure on people to,
02:58they're reigning against it a bit.
03:00I think that what seems like a bit of a stealth charge
03:03and they don't know what they're actually paying for.
03:06There's also confusion over what counts as a tip and what counts as a business cost.
03:11Some diners see a service charge as something that should be built into menu prices,
03:15while a voluntary tip is viewed as a personal gesture for exceptional service.
03:20That blurred line is adding to frustration
03:22around what people feel they should or shouldn't be paying.
03:25Part of the issue is there's a lot of confusion between service charge and a tip.
03:31And a service charge, which may be 10%, 12.5%, 15%, won't necessarily,
03:38it's not the same as a tip, it won't necessarily go to your server.
03:42A tip will go to your server, a separate tip.
03:46So it might go into a pot that gets divvied up at the end of the night
03:49or it might go to them individually.
03:53Most Britons say they would remove a service charge for rude staff,
03:57bad food or slow service,
03:59but older diners are far more likely to actually follow through.
04:02As automatic charges become more common,
04:05the debate now centres on control,
04:07whether tipping in Britain remains a genuine choice
04:10or slowly becomes an assumed part of eating out.
04:13.
Comments