"How is this even legal?": Did not leave a tip at the self-checkout - and the price went up
A Shake Shack customer uploaded a video to the web, which went viral with about 4.2 million views, and said that he decided not to tip for a milkshake order he made at a branch at the Salt Lake City airport, and was stunned to see that the price of the product increased.
Is the popular fast-food chain Shake Shack raising prices in the US for those who do not leave a tip on the self-checkout screen? In recent days, a video by content creator B.D. Powell has been circulating online, garnering 4.2 million views, in which he claimed that his wife noticed a phenomenon whereby product prices at the chain rise if the customer does not choose to tip.
Powell decided to test the claim himself. He ordered three milkshakes at the branch at the Salt Lake City airport — vanilla, cookies and cream, and strawberry — with each priced on the order screen at $5.99. Later in the self-checkout process, he was presented with tipping options of 15%, 18%, and 20%, alongside a "no tip" option. When he chose the latter, a message appeared on the screen warning of a "price update" for items in the cart. After a re-check, it turned out that the price of each milkshake had risen to $6.49 — a total increase of $1.50 for the three drinks.
Powell warned his followers "not to go" to the chain following the experience, and many users reacted with anger:
"How is this even legal?" wondered one commenter, while another wrote that "forcing an extra charge is a red line, I will never go there." A third commenter claimed that "the tipping culture in the US has reached an unbearable limit."
However, other users expressed doubt regarding the claim, noting that Powell did not show what happens to the price when one does leave a tip. Others raised an alternative hypothesis, suggesting it was an extra charge practiced by the chain during late-night hours, and that Powell timed the filming to make it appear as if the increase was related to the tip.
Shake Shack denied the claims and stated in a response published under the video, where additional comments have since been blocked:
"Thank you for bringing this to our attention. This is not a Shake Shack policy, and we are currently looking into the matter with the franchisee HMSHost, which operates the branch and the self-checkout system at the Salt Lake City airport."
