NAME AND SHAME. Restaurant service charges

cheepskate_2

I never tip.
In this country there is a minimum wage+ tax credits if your income is so low.
There job is to serve with a smile.............I wouldn't leave a tip for a sales person that brought lots of clothes for me to try on,

I never feel embarrassed by not tipping, I think the whole 2tipping" is to make you feel that you have to do it.

And I will ask the diner to deduct the service charge if it is added.............GGGRRR one of my pet hates.

gunsandbanjos

Definitely living up to your name there cheepskate.

cheepskate_2

gunsandbanjos wrote: »

Definitely living up to your name there cheepskate.

Lol, Been called a cheepskate many a time by DH and kids.

Jew

gunsandbanjos wrote: »

Definitely living up to your name there cheepskate.

Don't you dare bring up my name in the same way



Cute: https://twitter.com/MartinSLewis/status/247383127088037888

JezR

davec1960 wrote: »

This won't make any difference to the amount paid
eg Total food bill is £120 (£100 before vat)
12.5% service charge is £15
Total £135

Using your method
Use pre vat total of £100
Service charge of 12.5% is £12.50
Total before vat is £112.50
Vat on £112.50 is £22.50
Total £135

Service charges are not subject to VAT if they are discretionary. So the VAT would only be applied to the food value above, ie £20 not £22.50.

It may be the case that some restaurant systems calculate the service charge as a percentage on the VAT-inclusive price of the food, rather than the ex-VAT price.

Vacationer

In UK it is a legal requirement to include all taxes and other obligatory charges in the prices displayed.
That's mean that all other charges it is out of Contract and you are not obliged to pay them.

Service Charge can be included in the price and can be not included. Also there can be no Service Charge at all. When it is not included then you are asked (usually it is stated in menu that a charge will be added to your bill) to pay Optional or Discretionary (or whatever they call it) Service Charge.
This charge is out of price of the meal and you don't have to pay it. According to UK law, Service Charges added by the restaurant are entirely optional.

If Service Charge is included in the price and if you don't like the service then you have a right not to pay for it. Therefore you have a right to ask to deduct Service Charge from your bill. Let's say if you got a bill for £50 (Service Charge included) but you are not happy with a service you received, then you asking what Service Charge is (you don't know because it is included to the meal price and it is not stated) and then you asking to deduct that amount. Let's say it is £5, so then you are obliged to pay £45 only.

However can be extra charges you are obliged to pay. These charges can be for extra or unusual services. Let say a charge for a groups or a charge for a lap dancer on your table. But you must be informed about any charges that may occur or they will be out of Contract.

Also you even have a right not to pay a full price of the meal itself. Let’s say you liked chicken but beef was grilled not as you requested. Of course you don’t have to pay full price (or even anything) for the beef.

Another very important thing is a payment itself. You cannot be forced to pay anything by a staff. Only Court have got a right to do so. So if there is a pressure from the staff or you just don’t want to make any fuss on this nice your birthday’s eve in front of your wife or a girlfriend or a bunch of friends then you have a right to make a payment “Under Protest”. You need to write it on the bill that you are doing so. This is giving you a chance of claiming against the restaurant at a later date.

Even more – you have a right not to pay at all. Restaurants often wrongly believe this means you have to pay for a meal whatever the circumstances. This is not the case. So long as you have a genuine reason for not paying and you leave your name and address, you have not acted in any way dishonestly and this is not a criminal offense for sure.

If the restaurant fails with any of these obligations if runs the risk of a prosecution by Trading Standards. You can threaten to report the restaurant if you are in an argument and if they know that they are not right they will not wish to run this risk.

If you do decide to make a claim against the restaurant you are entitled to claim not only service you paid Under Protest, but also any other loss that the poor service may have cost you. For example the cost of cleaning or replacing clothing damaged as the result of spillage and any other incidental costs which arise as a result, for example, the costs of travelling. Also you can make a claim not only regarding financial loss but non-financial loss such as distress, inconvenience or disappointment too.

unholyangel

atotori wrote: »

There are a lot of mean-spirited practices that crop up in the service world. One of the worst I've heard of so far is that if customers run off without paying some establishment take the customer's bill out of the wage of the service person who waited on the customers... because, according to the company, the waiter is responsible for the customers slipping away without paying.

One of the places exposed for this practice on TV was Planet Hollywood !!! Can you imagine how much of your salery you could loose if a table of 4 sneeked off without paying in that place! I can't remember when going out for a family or friends meal came to less than £100 and that's at Pizzahut !

anyhow that's my 10 pence in the discussion ring...night all

They can't deduct more than 10% of your gross pay on any given day though and it needs to be an express term in your contract - that you have been given a copy of - and the events you're being penalised for need to have happened after you agreed, you cant agree retrospectively.

The only real exception to the 10% is if its your final pay.


As for eating out, while i'm not saying they dont provide a service and they dont have difficult jobs......servers are different as they are the "front line" so to speak. Quite bluntly, they will be the ones taking the flak for the mistakes that everyone made.

I have rarely had reason to complain but there is one time I couldve been labelled an awkward customer. They served me instant mash. Maybe its just me but I dont feel it is appropriate for a restaurant to serve instant mash. I also don't feel it is appropriate for the restaurant to lie about the mash and pretend its real (if I can taste the difference I'm sure others can) only to back down and admit its mash when one of the "pellets" are shown to staff as they hadnt even made the instant mash correctly.

Maybe I'm just a food snob :X But I hate going to a restaurant only to be served cheap frozen crap.

I always tip. Just to varying degrees depending on the service. Anywhere from 1% to 20%.

Jew

Vacationer wrote: »

In UK it is a legal requirement to include all taxes and other obligatory charges in the prices displayed.
That's mean that all other charges it is out of Contract and you are not obliged to pay them.

Service Charge can be included in the price and can be not included. Also there can be no Service Charge at all. When it is not included then you are asked (usually it is stated in menu that a charge will be added to your bill) to pay Optional or Discretionary (or whatever they call it) Service Charge.
This charge is out of price of the meal and you don't have to pay it. According to UK law, Service Charges added by the restaurant are entirely optional.

If Service Charge is included in the price and if you don't like the service then you have a right not to pay for it. Therefore you have a right to ask to deduct Service Charge from your bill. Let's say if you got a bill for £50 (Service Charge included) but you are not happy with a service you received, then you asking what Service Charge is (you don't know because it is included to the meal price and it is not stated) and then you asking to deduct that amount. Let's say it is £5, so then you are obliged to pay £45 only.

However can be extra charges you are obliged to pay. These charges can be for extra or unusual services. Let say a charge for a groups or a charge for a lap dancer on your table. But you must be informed about any charges that may occur or they will be out of Contract.

Also you even have a right not to pay a full price of the meal itself. Let’s say you liked chicken but beef was grilled not as you requested. Of course you don’t have to pay full price (or even anything) for the beef.

Another very important thing is a payment itself. You cannot be forced to pay anything by a staff. Only Court have got a right to do so. So if there is a pressure from the staff or you just don’t want to make any fuss on this nice your birthday’s eve in front of your wife or a girlfriend or a bunch of friends then you have a right to make a payment “Under Protest”. You need to write it on the bill that you are doing so. This is giving you a chance of claiming against the restaurant at a later date.

Even more – you have a right not to pay at all. Restaurants often wrongly believe this means you have to pay for a meal whatever the circumstances. This is not the case. So long as you have a genuine reason for not paying and you leave your name and address, you have not acted in any way dishonestly and this is not a criminal offense for sure.

If the restaurant fails with any of these obligations if runs the risk of a prosecution by Trading Standards. You can threaten to report the restaurant if you are in an argument and if they know that they are not right they will not wish to run this risk.

If you do decide to make a claim against the restaurant you are entitled to claim not only service you paid Under Protest, but also any other loss that the poor service may have cost you. For example the cost of cleaning or replacing clothing damaged as the result of spillage and any other incidental costs which arise as a result, for example, the costs of travelling. Also you can make a claim not only regarding financial loss but non-financial loss such as distress, inconvenience or disappointment too.

That is really interesting stuff, thanks! Bolded really enlightening parts.

How do you know all this? (Source?) Thanks.

catmiaow

Giraffe automatically add 10% tip on the bill, I think it's a disgrace. I don't mind tipping but the fact they automatically add it on boils my blood!

Sharon87

Tinseltown in Bayswater, London add a service charge on. That's probably because their service is terrible. Moody waitress, who doesn't know the menu or what's in certain things. Had to send a side salad back because she didn't tell me it came smothered in dressing (can't stand dressing) when I asked what was in it.