HAMBURG – A German professor of marketing has found something else wrong with the euro: it leads consumers to pay ridiculously high tips.

Claudius Schmitz said many people said, “Keep the change!” because they were afraid to look mean. But according to the German Sunday newspaper Bild am Sonntag, that leads to a 20 percent gratuity if you buy a EUR 2.50 cup of coffee and let the waiter keep three euros.

In most parts of Europe, diners and taxi passengers often leave an extra 10 percent as a tip.

A single euro is worth far more than a unit of most of the currencies it replaced. At USD 1.26, it is not far from the value of the pound sterling, which is worth USD 1.79 at the moment.

Schmitz, who teaches at a Gelsenkirchen university, advised his fellow Germans to follow the standard practice among most other Europeans: doggedly wait till the change has been counted out and given to you before returning a tip.

It is common practice in Germany for diners to loudly announce, “Keep the change!” or “Round it up to … euros.”

DPA
Subject: German news