No more tips calculated on the total with taxes – this Wednesday, May 7. Quebec is now strictly supervising how tips are presented to consumers.
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Here is a summary of what changes in tip policy.
Clarity and choice
Tips proposals must only include predetermined amounts, with the exception of a compulsory option allowing the consumer to register the amount of their choice himself.
Clearly, buttons 10 %, 15 % and 20 % can always be displayed, but it will now be necessary to add a box of the “personalized amount” type so that the customer can freely choose what he wants to give.
-Calculation on the right amount
This is probably the change that will require the most adaptation on the part of traders, but which was widely awaited by consumers: the percentage of the tip should be calculated on the amount of the invoice before the taxes.
Until now, several payment terminals offered tips calculated on the total amount, taxes included. Result: a 15 % added to the total with taxes actually equivalent to almost 17.25 % on the addition of the prices of the articles displayed.
From now on, a tip of 15 %should be automatically applied to the total prices displayed on the label or the menu, before the addition of the GST (5 %) and the TVQ (9.975 %).
Neutrality and uniformity
It will no longer be permissible to associate comments or value judgments with the various tip options displayed on the terminals. All proposals must be presented in a neutral and uniform manner.
Terminals previously displayed messages like “15 %: correct”, “20 %: good” or “25 %: excellent”, which could push customers to choose higher options under social pressure. In 2022, the expert in label Julie Blais Comeau even believed that this type of display was flirting with “intimidation”.
With the new regulations, traders must avoid any incentive element in the presentation of tips.
