What should I do?

Question

I went to a decent restaurant on my lunch break
Friday. The service was horrible and I didn't tip the waitress.I will summarize it by saying that after we were sitted at the table, it took the waitress 15 minutes to come to our table and then after she came to our table she gave us menus and then we didn't see her for another 20. No water, you always get water. By the time she decided to come take our order we had to ask for to go boxes as well. She did not supply us with ketchup for the fries, then when she thought about it she brought the ketchup but we were asking for the bill at that time. I do understand that the lunch hours can be very busy, but the section that we were in was basicly empty. My coworker paid her bill with cash and I paid with my debit card, which came up to 15.68. Ok sunday night i looked at my bank statement online and found out that the waitress added on three dollars to my bill-18.68. should i stop payment on the sale or just let it go

Answer 1

you should call the credit card company and stop payment, then you should go to the restorant and complain and get a full refund on the 18.68, not just the $3

im serious

Answer 2

1.Call the resturant and speak to the manager or the owner if possible. Be calm and articulate.
2. Since you used a debit card, call your bank and let it be known that you only authorized $15.68 and they will advise you on recovery of the $3.00.
3. In the future, if you have a similar experience again, when you pay, be sure to write in a hugh X in the space where the tip is inserted and also initial the actual amount that you have agreed to pay.
Too bad that you were in a hurry to get back to work, because it would have been helpful had you been able to speak to her superior. Restaurants are in the business to get return business and no matter the price point, a good manager or owner wants to know if a patron has a bad experience so that the proper adjustments can be made. They are not in the business to lose customers, because I bet you and your co-workers will probably never eat there again.

Answer 3

Myself I would let this go.
Some restaurant require tips regardless even if the service is bad.

Sometimes the restaurant credit card processor puts the tip on the bill automatically but will be removed after the banks get the actual transactions info. This could take from 3 to 7 days.

If you want to and if you have the receipt from the restaurant showing that you did not fill out the tip section. Then you could ask the bank to dispute it when the transaction is actually hard posted to your account.

Answer 4

Do NOT let this go. It doesn't matter if you received the best service in the world, the tip is left at the customer's discretion and this woman committed a theft.

I'm not saying you should go to the cops, but you should stop payment and let the restaurant manager know. You don't have to be angry or rude, after all, she may have made an honest mistake. (I know, unlikely, but it's good to be gracious.) In any case, you're just giving the manager information he should have about one of his employees. If she did it to you, she's doing it to others and she's hoping that no one will notice or that people will just let it slide.

Obviously, if this starts to be a hassle for you, let it go. Your time and peace of mind are certainly worth more than $3.00. But just because it's a small amount of money, it doesn't mean that the principle isn't valid.

Also, leaving a "penny" for bad service strikes me as immature and a little offensive.

Answer 5

Though small, since it's fraud, I lean toward the effort of correcting it through the credit card company. They and the restaurant share in the responsibility to ensure that the person authorizing the credit amount (including the tip line) is the person authorized to do so, and in this case it was not.

I was once a secret shopper for a hotel in Santa Fe, NM. The room service guy tried to add his own extra tip, even though the delivery already added a gratuity. He of course didn't know I was the secret shopper and I busted him the next day to the manager.

Answer 6

That was not up to the waitress to tack on three dollars, like the other person said that was theft!!!! 100 customers dine in that restaurant and she tack on 3 dollars to everyone, thats a pretty fat pocket of change isn't it? The management should be made aware of it. If it has already cleared, get a copy of the transaction and then go see the manager! I work too hard for someone to TAKE my money, don't you?

Answer 7

I had a similar situation where I used my card, but I actually did leave a tip because my service was ok...when I checked I saw that there had been extra added to my bill as well. I contacted the restaurant and demanded that not only the charge be reversed for the ENTIRE BILL, but that I am also compensated for the abuse as well. Bottom line is that you are entrusting these places with your card to be honest...this abuse must stop, this is what leads to identity theft. Please do something....next time, it might be allot more than $3.00.....& it could be allot harder to straighten out!

Answer 8

I would stop payment on the bill and I would contact the restaurant and ask to speak to the manager. Yeah...it was only $3.00, but think if that girl is doing that to all of her customers....it really adds up. I"m sure her manager would like to know what kind of employees he has.

Answer 9

Stop the payment. A tip is given for good service. Write to the resturant and explain why. Threaten to write to the newspapers with your experience. They wont want the publicity.

Answer 10

There have been times that I have looked at my statement online and the amount wasn't the same as what i paid. Then a day or 2 later, it was exactly what i paid. I don't understand it, but have you checked back again? It may be the same for you.