Money Moral Dilemma: What should I do with the money overpaid for the Christmas party I organised? 31 January at 7:00PM edited 31 January at 7:01PM in Special occasions & other celebrations 45 replies 29.2K views

LP53

I think they would not bat an eyelid and fully expect you to keep it especially as you went to the trouble of organising it and it’s what most people do when they transfer money- rounding it up to the nearest pound. I’m sure if you let them know there’s 25 pound extra as most rounded it up they would say keep it or if you don’t want to do that just say you’re putting it toward the next party.

MaltieMe

Part of me says keep it for your time and effort as your colleagues knew they were overpaying you, but if you don't really need the money I would buy some food and give it to the local food bank to help those less fortunate.

keithyno.1

Spend the £25 on something nice, or put it towards your savings, or give it to charity or whatever you want to do with it. The people who rounded up their payments by 85p to £30 obviously weren’t bothered about it and aren’t missing it.

Plus, for the fact you had to collate and monitor around 34 individual payments into your bank account to cover the total AFTER going to the trouble of organising the party for such a large number of people at the restaurant in the first place AND all the time you spent over the whole thing in my view means you’re entitled to the small ‘tip’ (because basically that’s what it is from your grateful friends/family/colleagues or whoever they were).

warby68

I don't think its unheard of for organisers to go free when a fair bit of work has been involved for an event. This is more or less what happened here. You didn't have to pay your share (or very little of it). The payments were made knowingly so no guilt required. It would be different if it was a miscalculation or similar mistake on your part.

YBR

Terry10R said:

Hi, send them all an email saying how much each they have due back and suggest it gets given to a charity. Throw it to a vote and I would be very surprised if anyone wants it back.Leaves you with a clear conscience 

This is exactly what happened in a similar situation in our office. The charity was a foodbank and we all agreed.

honestcove

Was this a works-do and ultimately funded by your employer?
If so, your “tip” is probably your employer’s money.
If not, then in fully self-funding an event up front and then securing payment after the event from 34 people without any defaulters whatsoever, then you are clearly a person of exceptional talent and probably need no advice from anyone. 

Chris_Jay

That's a really nice problem to have! Nobody is niggling over the cost, they've all paid their bills and you have a gift, or tip, for your work in organising it all, and taking a chance on being repaid. You're all still friends, and you won't resent it if you're asked to organise the next works do.

I can see why a moral, honest colleague would be a bit worried about the overpayment, but you're also their friend. Any of these suggestions are worth doing, except the lottery idea - I agree that you could have a bigger problem with that than the one you have now.
It's your choice. Ask those who overpaid if they want their 15 pence back, buy some nice biccies or chocs, put it towards the next gathering, give it to charity...or see it as a well-deserved thank you from the friends and coworkers who didn't have to take a risk by paying with their own money. To have £25 left, the bill must have been huge, at 15 pence overpayment, which not all of them paid, according to your post; also, not everyone paid you back by bank transfer, so some must have given you the correct cash, yes?

I don't have the maths skills to break down the bill; I can manage 35x30, but not how many 15s make £25....

I think they might be embarrassed if you approached them about it, in my experience of work/social organising.

My idea, on taking a few minutes to think how I would deal with it, because we're all different, would be to send a group email - or get together and talk to each other (there's a novel thought!) and suggest that the money starts the savings fund for the next time, and keep a book of names and dates. Maybe £3 weekly? It would soon mount up, and with spring and summer coming, lighter evenings, and pubs restaurants desperate for customers, you have the start of a social club and something that you can look forward to. Coach trips out for a day? You don't say where you live, are there any lovely places reasonably close?
In my own case, I don't drive, so our works outings on a coach were really exciting for me.

A long-winded response, my apologies if anyone has fallen asleep.

medievalbiker

In a resaurant, people generally round up their bills as a tip, thus it was probably intended to be used as a tip to the resaurant staff and should be used as such.

BethP

Perhaps next time your group is out out, put the £35.00 into the kitty?  It is what I’d do, as it wouldn’t want to keep it.

BethP

I’ve just read the other comments and giving the £35:00 to a Food Bank sounds a very positive thing to do - especially now when Food Banks are receiving fewer donations