3 On Your Side: To Tip Or Not To Tip When Using An App
By Jim Donovan
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- From the coffee shop to the taxi cab, new technology can pose some tricky tipping situations. To tip or not to tip? 3 On Your Side Consumer Reporter Jim Donovan looks at some modern day tipping questions.
When swiping plastic for morning coffee, consumers are often faced with another screen - asking how much they'd like to tip. Some find that more intimidating than the old tip jar, while others ask, "really?"
Miriam Cross of Kiplinger's Personal Finance decided to look into some of the tipping etiquette posed by new technology, starting with the coffee shop, or any place where customers aren't served at the table. She says, "If someone gives you really good service - they've gone out of their way to accommodate your allergies, or if they've heaped extra scoops on your ice cream cone, then it's a lovely thing to leave something in the tip jar, or add 10-15 percent to your bill."
Another modern day tipping question is posed by ride service Uber, which provides for an entire transaction within its app, no cash or cards to exchange. Their website says there's no need to tip your driver.
And the app -- like some others -- doesn't even give users an opportunity to tip a driver who goes above and beyond. In that case Cross suggests a low-tech approach. She says, "One tip that I would add is that it doesn't hurt to carry a little bit of cash on you because you may find yourself in situations where you want to add a gratuity, but you can't add it to your credit card."
By the way, if you haven't recalibrated your tipping frame of mind lately -- there's been an update there too. 18 percent is the new normal at restaurants up from 15 percent.