Services: Holiday Tipping

While tipping is something that should be done year-round, the holidays often raise questions for many consumers. How much do you tip for a one-time service provider? How about a year-round contractor? Its questions like these that leave many consumers feeling uncertain and uncomfortable.

Angie’s List (http://www.angieslist.com/), the nation’s leading provider of consumer ratings on local service companies, conducted a nationwide poll and found 38 percent of respondents don’t tip their service providers during the holidays. Of those that skip out on tips, 15 percent say it’s because they don’t know how much to give, while 21 percent don’t have the money to tip.

“Tips are meant to be rewards for good service, as well as to supplement a person’s income,” said Angie Hicks, founder of Angie’s List. “If money is tight this year, you could still put forth an effort to let your service providers know you appreciate them and you haven’t just forgotten. I’ve had Angie’s List members tell me they’ll bake a sweet treat for their service providers and add a handwritten thank you note. Another alternative to a cash tip is writing a praise-filled letter to the worker’s supervisor. Superb service may prompt a raise for that individual.”

It’s important to consider whether the contractor is someone you rely on regularly throughout the year, or someone you use occasionally, or only once.

“If it’s someone you use throughout the year, like a housecleaner or a babysitter, instead of a tip of cash, a gift at the holidays might be more appropriate,” Hicks adds. “And for those one-time services, the tip can be determined by the size of the job and how well they did it.”

Angie’s List offers the following tipping advice to help consumers get through the holiday season:

Holiday-related services:

Contractors who help hang your decorations, lights, etc.: A tip of $20 to $50 for the crew may be in order, based on the complexity of the task.

Personal shoppers/concierge/errand services: A tip of 15 to 20 percent is recommended, possibly more, depending on the complexity or amount of work you have them do for you. Some of these services will do shopping, gift wrapping, mailing of gifts, etc.

Event entertainment: A tip of 15 to 20 percent is appropriate for Santa impersonators, carolers or musicians.

Chefs and caterers: If you hire the chef for a holiday party or family gathering, tip 15 to 20 percent based on the final cost. However, many advise you shouldn’t include the cost of alcohol in determining the tip amount, but it’s up to you. For caterers working an event in your home, it’s customary to tip 15 to 20 percent spread among the “captain” and the servers.

Year-round services:

Yard workers, handymen, etc: A tip of $20 to $50 may be in order depending how often they visit your home.

Housecleaners: Many suggest $25 to $50, a day’s pay, or a gift of equal value. If you use a service that sends a different housecleaner each time, this may not be necessary, unless you ask them to do some one-time tasks to help you prepare for the holidays – such as helping unpack and put up decorations, a deep cleaning before a party, etc.

Childcare providers: For babysitters, the recommendation is a gift at the holidays from your kids, plus one or two nights’ pay. For a full-time nanny, one to four weeks’ pay plus a small gift from your kids is appropriate. For standard childcare providers, a gift at the holidays and $25 to $75 each. This may not be appropriate for some pre-Kindergarten child care/education providers. Check with the manager of the facility to see what’s appropriate, which might be a small gift from your kids.

Mail and paper delivery:  Though the U.S. Postal Service frowns on gratuities and gifts for mail carriers, authorities request that the gift or gratuity be $20 or less.  For daily newspaper delivery, a holiday tip of $15 to $25 is appropriate.

*1,019 Angie’s List members took our poll. Responses are representative of Angie’s List members, but not the general public

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Angie’s List is where thousands of consumers share their ratings and reviews on local contractors and companies in more than 425 different categories. Currently, more than 1 million consumers across the U.S. rely on Angie’s List to help them find the right contractor or company for the job they need done. Members have unlimited access to the list via Internet or phone; receive the award-winning Angie’s List magazine, which includes articles on home improvement and maintenance, consumer trends and scam alerts; and they can utilize the Angie’s List complaint resolution service. Get more information about Angie’s List at http://www.angieslist.com/ View the latest Angie's List News Releases in our Press Center and read Angie’s blog at http://www.angiehicksblog.com/.