How Much Should You Tip Your Limo Driver?

31 Jan How Much Should You Tip Your Limo Driver?

We live in a country where tipping is accepted (and expected) almost everywhere. We tip our waitresses, hairdressers, and bartenders. Anyone who provides us with a service typically receives gratuity.

The same should go for your limousine driver. Approximately 256,651 people are employed by the taxi and limousine industry in the United States, and they deserve to be tipped. The driver brought you and your entire bridal party around on your wedding day. Maybe they got you and your fleet of friends to prom on time, safe and sound. Did you use a limo for your last wine tour? Regardless of the reason, you should always tip your limousine driver.

Determining how much to tip your limo chauffeur can be difficult, as it is for everything else. We all whip out our calculators on our phones at the restaurant when the bill comes to figure out exactly how much change to leave the server. It is much less often that we rent limos than go to restaurants, so this can be tricky. Here are four points to consider when trying to decide how much to tip your limousine driver.

Car Size
First things first: if you don’t know how much to tip your driver, then sticking to the traditional 20% rule is fine. However, the size of the car can come into play when determining the tip amount. Smaller cars or limos permit a smaller tip, whereas stretch limos and other large vehicles should come with a higher tip.

Trip Time
The duration of the trip makes a difference on the gratuity percentage. If the trip is only about 30-45 minutes, then 15% of the total bill is a great amount to leave for the driver. If the trip takes over an hour, then a 20% tip or higher is much appreciated.

Time of Day
Trips during the day typically lead to a lesser tip than trips at night. There is typically less traffic during the day, and safety is much less of an issue during daylight hours than at night.

Driver Quality
A driver’s quality can be determined by many factors. Was the driving itself actually pleasant? Did the driver open the doors for you and your party? Was the music request honored? Did the driver turn up or down the heat/AC or volume of music when desired? All of these things can help you assess the driver’s quality. The higher the quality, the higher the tip should be.

The next time you rent a limo, remember these four points when deciding on how much to tip your limousine driver!