Sneaky Tips by Cafe

[Beansfordinner]

Went to a local cafe/restaurant. Very thankful for it being there as it does fantastic food. Usually pay via my card. However, my card is old (new one coming through is a month of so) and doesn't work at many tills, so I've been using cash for a while for all my day to day buys.

Anyway, have been popping into the cafe regularly in the last few weeks, and realised they priced items with '£X.99p. So, they give change in the whole pounds, but not the 1p. Didn't really notice this until this morning. Went in for a croissant. It cost 99p. I gave them a £1.00. And the man reached into the tips tin to give me the 1p. I felt a bit awkward, and so said, 'No, keep it in there'.

Now, two things: One: If I sit in a place to eat, then I always pay a tip (unless the service is god awful). And Two: To make a person give a tip just for buying something seems wrong. And then to make the person feel awkward for a 1p seems even more 'wrong'.

The flip side is that this place must be making a tidy sum from this level of awkwardness - by fishing the 1p out of the tips tin, and people awkwardly refusing - when a tip wasn't deserved.

Just feels wrong. AIBU? This feels like shark practice. What would you do?

About 1p? I’d do nothing and get over it

May be he didn’t have any pennies in the till?

Shark practice

Over 1p?

I expect they don't bother getting pennies for their float from the bank very often because they aren't really used. I expect you were the first person to want 1p change for days, if not weeks. It's hardly scam of the century.

The expression is sharp practice by the way

Time they phased pennies out. I hope the staff enjoy splitting the £3.50 they make over the day.

@NynaeveSedai tbh this is a good improvement though .

I think it is sharp practice. Obviously to the individual customer 1p doesn't make a difference but over a day/week/year all those pennies will add up (and he won't be paying tax on them!)

How many pennies do you think he's stealing from tips @readingriot? How many people actually pay in cash these days?

You created this whole thing in your own head. Either take the change or don't.

I like 1pennies. Although if they phase them out then things can’t be £x.99 any more which would be good.

They would need 100 customers to make the grand sun of £1. I really wouldn’t be worrying.

On the flip side, at the petrol station near me, they have a tips jar.. if people go over by a couple of pence putting fuel in they usually just take the pennies out of their jar.

Perhaps the 1p goes towards the charge the card companies make, the one that will be made for every transaction, even the low ones. Kind of balances things out a bit. If people only spend 99p and use a card, there must be a processing fee on each one, or has it changed?