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Busted, Buster!
Customers are accusing Dave & Buster’s of running a tipping “scam” by covertly inflating the 20% standard.
A Reddit user shared that she went to the dinner-and-arcade emporium with their sister, boyfriend and nephew, and the sister was planning on paying the bill but didn’t have her physical card.
Staff brought them the machine to use Apple Pay and also a printed receipt, but when they looked at the tip suggestions on both receipts for the same percentage, the dollar amounts were different.
The total bill was $86.88, but the digital payment screen revealed a higher suggested tip than the paper receipt.
On the digital receipt, it was suggested to tip 18% ($15.64), 20% ($17.38), or 22% ($19.11). The paper receipt suggested the same percentages, but the dollar amounts varied, showing a suggested $14.48, $16.09, or $17.70, respectively.
The inconsistency had people pondering how the tip amounts were calculated and if the system was maybe increasing gratuity amounts on purpose.
But some pointed out that the disparities were likely due to calculations with tax. It appeared that the digital receipt gave a suggested tip based on a post-tax price and the paper receipt gave a suggestion based on the pre-tax amount.
One person called it “shady” while another noted that “tipping culture is a travesty at this point.”
However, other social media posts have revealed that the math simply doesn’t add up — and it might not have anything to do with taxes.
In a video from December with 3.3 million views, a TikTok user showed that the bill on the digital payment terminal at Dave & Buster’s was a total of $158.92, and the screen offered a suggestion of a 20% tip amounting to $44.38.
But she then showed a phone screen with a Google search asking what 20% of 158 was, which gave her the answer of $31.60 — a more than $12 difference from the tip amount given.
The group eventually decided to simply tip $20, which the digital payment screen claimed was just 9%, when in reality it’s 12.6%.
Another Reddit user quipped that there was “new math” when it came to tipping at the arcade and restaurant establishment.
This user shared a bill worth $59.83, which recommended what it said was a 20% tip of $15.16, when the actual calculation of 20% comes out to $11.97.
Looking at the full breakdown of the receipt, the restaurant appears to have done the tip calculation based on the taxed total before any discounts — but the so-called “discount” was actually an item that was accidentally added then removed from the bill.
Even though the patron never ordered the item, it was used in the calculation for the tip option. When the customer manually input a 20% tip based on the pre-tax amount, not including the added and removed items, the system “tried to shame” them for only tipping 15%.
One Dave & Buster’s customer on Facebook shared their experience as well, noting that “the 20% suggested tip on my bill was actually over 50%.”
The photo of the receipt revealed a subtotal of $19.97 with a suggested 20% tip of $10.25 — when it should have been just $3.99.
It’s unclear exactly how Dave & Buster’s calculates their tipping suggestions, but there has long been a conversation over whether tipping should be based on the pre-tax or post-tax amount.
Diners typically tip based on the bill before tax, but with tipping culture evolving, the standard has changed, and many do tip post-tax.
“A lot [tip post-tax] including me,” one person wrote. “My kids, however, tip pre-tax, which is ok for me. Goes to show they’re financially aware.”
“Yeah, the pre-tax thing is wild, they’re definitely doing that on purpose lol. Most places do it that way, but it’s still kinda sneaky when you’re not paying attention,” another said.
“As consumers, we have to be ever vigilant for these types of things,” someone shared. “I have noted lately that several businesses are doing things that, to me, push the honesty limits.”
