Tipping on Card Machines

A guide to accepting tips at work

Tipping is nothing new, but as the world around us gets more digitally-savvy by the day, is your business ready for this brave new world of cashless tipping?

In this new tipping guide, we’ll explore why we tip, how to accept tips at work, and how card readers like Tyl’s Clover Flex (fees and eligibility criteria apply) could help you set suggested tipping amounts. All being well, you could be collecting tips on your POS system in no time.

Why we tip

Tipping became popular in the UK sometime during the Tudor period as a way for overnight guests to offer money to their host’s servants. It’s a practice that stuck around for the next 500 years and today there are different attitudes and expectations around tipping. Do we tip a hairdresser? A cab driver? The person who asks to carry our bags? Whatever your take on it, it’s worth thinking about how your business collects tips from customers.

You may come across tipping in places like cafes, restaurants, barbers and beauty salons. But why do we do it? Unlike in the US, there is less of an expectation to add on a percentage after a meal, but many would consider it the decent thing to do. And even though UK employers are expected to pay the National Minimum Wage, many customers like to support friendly, hard-working staff by contributing a little extra at the end of their meal, drinks or other experience.

How much should a customer tip?

While there is no defined amount that a customer is expected to pay extra, tipping 10 to 15% of a bill may be considered reasonable, according to Visit London.

As a business, you may wish to decide whether tips should be discretionary or included in the bill; many hospitality businesses such as restaurants add a standard 12.5% service charge to the final bill. Also, a customer may wish to know how their tips are distributed among staff. Read our guide on running a payroll for more insights into how your staff can get paid.

Cashless tipping

Although tips have traditionally been paid in cash, the recent shift towards a more cashless society – and contactless payments – has changed the way we give a little extra. In fact, according to UK Finance, the percentage of Brits who paid in cash fell by 35% in 2020. Luckily, there are different ways you can offer your customers a cashless payment alternative.

Accepting tips on your Clover Flex

Tyl’s Clover Flex – a.k.a. a POS multitasker – allows you to take payments and manage your business all at the same time. And it’s more than capable of accepting tips. If you are the proud owner of one of our card machines (or are looking at becoming one) then we’ve pulled together some ‘tips’ for how to set up tipping on your machine.

When tips are enabled as a service on your account at boarding, you have the option to show pre-set tip suggestions or to ask the customer to enter a custom tip amount on the tablet.

Here is how to set your tip options:

1. Open the Account & Setup app on your Clover Flex.
2. Tap Tips.
3. Select Ask for tip (always requires signature) checkbox.
4. Tap Save.

How to set suggested tipping amounts

You can set up to four default tip suggestions for a customer to choose from on the device screen, with the tip options varying in percentages of the sale.

To set or change tip suggestions:

1. Open the Setup app.
2. Tap Tips.
3. Tap Tip suggestions. (If skipped, default suggestions display on the screen or receipt.)
4. Enter Tip %.
5. Enter Tip label description.
6. Select the checkbox for each tip % you want to have displayed to the cardholder. If you deselect all tip options and tips are enabled, a prompt to enter a custom tip amount displays on the screen.
7. Tap Save.

Accepting tips on an Ingenico card machine

You can also accept tips on other Tyl devices, such as the Ingenico Move 3500, this will need to be enabled as a service on your account at boarding. Simply click on the main menu, then ‘services’ and ‘payment with gratuity’, then add the tip amount. As of July 28th 2021, a new Ingenico software update means you can accept tips through a shortcut on the main screen. You can add the ‘payment with gratuity’ function as a shortcut on the main screen too to allow you to select this payment method easily.

Discover more about digital business

With businesses all over the UK embracing the digital world now more than ever, we’ve put together some articles and guides to help you do the same.

• Going paperless
• Should my business offer email receipts?

Disclaimer

This has been prepared by Tyl by NatWest for informational purposes only and should not be treated as advice or a recommendation. There may be other considerations relevant to you and your business so you should undertake your own independent research.

Tyl by NatWest makes no representation, warranty, undertaking or assurance (express or implied) with respect to the adequacy, accuracy, completeness, or reasonableness of the information provided.

Tyl by NatWest accepts no liability for any direct, indirect, or consequential losses (in contract, tort or otherwise) arising from the use of the information contained herein. However, this shall not restrict, exclude, or limit any duty or liability to any person under any applicable laws or regulations of any jurisdiction which may not be lawfully disclaimed.