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Almost a fifth of Brits opposed to tipping
A new survey of 2,000 consumers by tax consultancy RSM has found that 19% of the UK public is against tipping and service charges when going out to eat.
According to the survey, 22% of consumers never pay the optional service charge added to the bill – however, there is regional disparity, with that proportion leaping to 34% in the South West, 31% in the East Midlands and 30% in Yorkshire.
As for the more generous parts of the UK, 33% of Londoners always pay the optional service charge, 32% of Northern Irish, and 30% of Welsh.
“Not paying the service charge may seem at odds with the UK’s reputation as being polite and unwilling to cause a fuss, so it could be that ongoing cost of living pressures are impacting behaviour. Cutting back on the service charge to make drinking or dining out more affordable could be the compromise that squeezed households are taking,” suggested Saxon Moseley, RSM UK’s head of leisure and hospitality.
Generational divide
What the RSM survey does not examine, but should also be considered, is the generational rift, with another study showing that, generally speaking, the older a consumer gets, the less they tip.
According to the survey from Dojo, for the 18-24-year-old bracket, the average amount tipped for a £100 bill was £18.24. However, 25-34-year-olds would pay £9.26 on top of a £100 bill, and 35-44-year-olds would tip £6.52.
Hospitality businesses will be affected by the Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act coming into effect on 1 October this year.
The new law means that employers must “pass on all tips and service charges to workers without deductions, except in very limited scenarios, such as deduction of income tax” and “ensure that tips are distributed in a fair and transparent manner when the employer takes control, or exerts significant influence, over their distribution”.
One recent survey revealed that around a fifth of hospitality businesses, equalling around 25,740 operators, will each see costs rise by anywhere from £60,000 to £360,000 per year as a result of the change.
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