10% gratuity added to bill

[Byz]

AIBU to be annoyed by a 10% gratuity charge being automatically added to my bill at a restaurant?

Seafood restaurant in the North East, a little town, not a city.

For four of us our bill came to about £230 and a £23 tip was automatically added to the bill. It did state at the bottom of the menu an optional charge would be added but they didn't ask me before actually adding it.
When the waitress brought the bill over she reminded us about the gratuity and said she would remove it if we prefer but I think I should have been asked if I wanted it adding in the first place. It was quite embarrassing to ask for it to be removed. She was polite about it but did seem a bit surprised.

Food was good, service was good and I would have left £10 but it soured the evening a bit so I left nothing. I don't think tips should be expected in this country.

@xanaduimages are you also in the US?

It's really interesting to hear of the tipping customs in different countries, but I think we're running the risk here of arguing apples against oranges, if we don't distinguish where we're talking about.

Quite right @WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll it'd be (not as extreme!) like discussing needing medical treatment like insulin or epipen and someone from UK saying to someone from US, "I would absolutely not accept getting asked to pay for that! Go to the papers and complain to your mp!".
(If that makes sense?)

I would’ve been embarrassed if I’d hosted a meal and then got the SC removed after good service. Especially if I’d tried to justify it by claiming the service was poor because she ‘didn’t work hard enough’ rather than the real reason was me being stingy.

For God's sake... the "poor waitresses" earn a living by earning a wage, like anyone in this country.

Yes, MichelleScarn - very good analogy. I was trying to think of one, but couldn't!

Nowadays most people tip between 15% and 20%.

Regardless of which country we're discussing, I still don't get why it seems to be expected that percentages should rise over time. If prices rise with inflation, surely that's already covered?!

Talk about misplaced blame.

The onus is on the restaurant to pay its staff a fair, living wage. Not on the public to subsidise wages.

I find the expectation of tips for doing a job where providing is expected is entitled. A tip should be reserved for when staff go above and beyond, not for completing their expected duties.

And if you believe a cash in hand tip is declared by the business or staff your being daft.

Mine is, it's shared out between all staff once a month and put on your wages, have worked places it wasn't but it's a lot tighter these days and HMRC do investigate things like this so it's a risk not doing it properly.

I hate the fact that service charge is added as standard in so many places.
If food and service is good I will leave a 10% tip, it would have to be exceptional to leave more than that so I'm particularly pissed off when 12.5% is added.

I have never asked for service charge to be removed (despite lack lustre service on occasion) because I think doing so would be embarrassing, but I'm sure that adding it to the bill as a matter of course does nothing to encourage good service.

But don't you see how much more honest and transparent that would become?

But don't you see that if you read my next paragraph I agree with you that it would be a better (fairer, more transparent) system! But it's not the system we have. And given the system we have, the unfair subsidy primarily goes from the restaurant goers like me who pay the service charge to those who don't pay but still benefit from the lower prices. I don't think the overall level of wages or restaurant profits are affected.

i wasn’t talking about cash in hand tips I was talking about service charge. However yes by law they should be declared and taxed, the fact that it is difficult to do and keep track of if another reason why service charge works better/ is easier.

And if you believe a cash in hand tip is declared by the business or staff your being daft.

having been questioned over tips by HMRC, its something that has to be done in many cases - its an expectation that waiting staff are tipped. HMRC can change your tax code to reflect this if they deem appropriate