What’s fair here?

[ColdExtremities]

Friends A and B meet for dinner or spa days very regularly. Bill is always split 50/50 as they tend to have similar tastes in food, wine etc.

They met last night at a restaurant that both wanted to go to. On arrival, A mentions that she was a £100 voucher for that restaurant that she’s happy for them to use it towards the meal as it’s not a place she goes to often.

Both eat and drink and have a lovely night.

The bill arrives and it’s for £144.

Who should pay what?

B pays £44 as it was very kind for A to offer to share it, that's my thoughts anyway

This is an obvious one. B pays £44 and then says ‘Shall we go on somewhere for a drink? My treat as we used your voucher.’

No that's fine. Also nice of you to split the tip. Your £100 is cash basically

I would pay £22 whether I was the voucher holder or not. I wouldn't expect my companion to pay when I was getting it for free if it was my voucher.

People are mad. This is CF territory.

But the voucher means the companion is also getting lots of theirs free.

But its not 'free'. If A had said my mum gave me £100 for my birthday would you expect her to pay £100 of the bill or her 50% and keep the change? Its no different.

OP you were more than reasonable and I think your friend was probably making sure you didn't want her to give you cash as well as pay the £44.

Absolutely!

"Splitting it" as she said it I would assume she was offering to pay £72 so you'd have got £28 back from her.

It's an odd one for me. I'd be happy to split the difference if it was my voucher but I'd feel cheeky doing that it if was someone else's voucher!

It's not the same. A voucher for a specific place isn't the same as someone giving you money and you choosing to spend it somewhere.

I wouldn't be bothered either way as either the voucher holder or the friend. I would happily pay £22 on top of my voucher or pay £44 as the friend. I would offer to do both.

You were generous; your birthday present subsidised her meal. Not harsh at all!

So by splitting it B was offering to pay £77 instead of £44?
I think you were generous but I don't think B was rude as it reads to me like she offered to pay more than you expected her to pay

I'd have paid half of the total bill.

The voucher was a birthday present to you, so I'd have paid the £44 on a card and given you £28 in cash.

£22 each

I don’t think the friend was saying she hoped only to pay half the £44 I think she meant does A want her to pay half the total bill.

“it’s £144- do you want to split it or…?”

OP out of interest what, if anything, was the or...?

I'd have been really confused if you offered to give me £28. The paying £44 would be nice and I'd thank you for that. Adding money on top of that would be weird.

Why weird?

Because it would be trying to make me profit on the whole evening. Not only have a got a free dinner, you've paid more than your fair share and now you're trying to pay me an extra £28 for hanging out with you. Weird.

I would have given friend with voucher £50 in cash to cover the £44 and some of tip

I would give friend benefit if the doubt and assumed she meant giving you £70 odd to cover her half

Same

Why would you think what you said was harsh? Sounds perfectly reasonable what you suggested. B should pay £44 and be grateful that your kindness to use a voucher saved her £28!

We'll have to differ on that then.

OP already stated they go 50/50 on a regular basis, so why you assume you're trying to pay me an extra £28 for hanging out with you. Weird.
when meals out together are a regular thing already is surly more weird.

The £100 was given to OP in the form of a voucher for a restaurant for a birthday present, admittedly the OP hasn't stated that the giver stipulated that it was/wasn't to be spent as part payment for a friend to join them for a meal.

I'm assuming, as a good friend of the OP, that the giver would have wanted the birthday recipient to spend the whole of the £100 on themselves and not on subbing me part of my meal.