Money Moral Dilemma: Should I refuse to pay the service charge when eating out?

MrChumley

It depends on whether you think the service warrants it. I stayed in a well-known 4 star hotel in London a few years ago. As the barman passed my table I asked for a glass of wine. He said "Sure, come to the bar". I did so, and he poured me a glass of wine, then handed me the bill to sign with a 12.5% service charge added. I smiled and crossed it out.

JaneHenery

No, you shouldn't pay it, nor should you feel obliged or be obliged to pay it in any way. It doesn't matter where you live. I've heard all the 'arguments' for this, which basically boil down to the industry hanging onto the custom because it serves them well in one way or another, usually doing their workers out of money. EVERY business has to factor in costs, there is no reason why the food industry should be any different. They need to pay their waiting staff a decent wage and work out their costs then charge appropriately. That way, if we don't want to pay for their decor or them paying higher rent or rates, then we don't need to - we can just eat elsewhere. It is servile, outdated and belongs in the middle ages. This is 2023, not 1823. Don't pay it. Strike a blow for upfront pricing and decent wages for waiting staff!

MikeCov

Tips were created to subsidise greedy employers, and let them pay their staff breadline basic wages. It also lets the employers pay lower pension contributions and NI. Tips should be done away with, and serving staff should be paid a salary commensurate with their hard work and long hours. 

IvonH

The "dine in" added cost has nothing to do with service and everything to do with extra costs associated with providing sit-down meals:  rates, taxes, cost of furniture, cleaning, washing dishes, energy costs for heating and lighting etc. etc. 
This is not specific to London; in fact, if you go to a bakery in any small town in Germany where they have a couple of tables, you get charged more for your items if you eat or drink them there than if you take them away.  

If a service charge has been added automatically, you can pay it and not leave tips.  Or ask to have it removed and then leave a tip.  I often do that simply because I don't trust the restaurant to pass on the service charge to the serving staff.  So I ask for the charge to be removed and then leave a cash tip.  I have no idea whether this is appreciated or not, though, in these days of people not using cash...

nev.obrady

You shouldn't feel obliged to pay a service charge but I know from experience it's easier to say than do.  Service charges can only be justified if they're clearly advertised and you know about them in advance - it's then your choice to dine there or not.  As for tipping, that should be for exceptional service, not normal service (as another contributor has already said).  But it should be service charge OR tipping, not both!

geoffibs

Absolutely. Just pay the price of the meal and nothing more, unless you feel the experience was good enough to pay more of course. Don't turn us into a tipping culture like the USA.

gothvixen

Personally I always tip, and would not do so only if I had received bad service. It doesn't seem right to refuse to tip them via the service charge just because everything's too expensive in London. Anyone going to live there surely knows in advance the financial penalty of enjoying the misery, dirty air and unfriendliness? (I lived there for 18 months and leaving was one of the happiest moments of my life.)

pathsofdarkness

I didn't realise that service charges are optional? My friend and I ate at Fire & Stone and and at the end she asked for the service charge to be removed (they got her food order wrong initially and so had to wait longer). However, the manager said it was legally required for us to pay it and that it's only tips which are optional. Honestly neither of us wanted to make a scene and so we did pay it. 

cheerful

elsien said:

mark_cycling00 said:

The answer is no, you should pay the service charge. London restaurants have hideous costs to pay that SW places don't. It's not uncommon for a bar/restaurant to pay £200,000 in rates. Insurance is high and people keep smashing your windows. 

It's not like anyone is making money off this, it's just a way of attracting people in by having slightly lower menu prices on the web.

Tbh this is the least of your money worries if you've moved to London hehe 

Disagree completely. The purpose of the service charge is to acknowledge good service. I don’t care how high their rates or other expenses are; they should be factoring that into the cost of the meals, not adding it on as a not very well displayed extra.
Particularly when it’s not very clear to you until you’re already in and sitting down, which makes me less inclined to leave a tip as I find it dishonest. 
if you feel a service charge is warranted then pay it or pay whatever amount you feel is appropriate. If not, then don’t. 

The purpose of the service charge is not, and never has been to "acknowledge good service".  The fact that it is automatically put on your bill is proof enough of that.  There is also the nonsensical fact that, whilst the waiting service is effectively identical whatever the the meal, it is charged as a percentage of the cost of the food rather than a fixed amount for waiting. The true purpose is to act as a tax avoidance scheme for the employer and to help them pay as low wages as they can get away with.

honestcove

I only tip when the people I am dining with would feel uncomfortable if I didn’t - as it is them that I am considering. 

Otherwise, tipping is just an outdated convention that sits as a festering boil in some sectors. If you don’t tip the very efficient person in Argos who found and filled your order, or any other person who provides goods and services efficiently - as most of them generally do - why tip in hospitality. The restaurants business is hospitality, not mine.