What is tip baiting?

Tip baiting is a practice in the gig economy where customers promise a large tip to a service provider in order to receive faster service or special treatment, but do not actually intend to follow through with the promised tip. This can be detrimental to the service provider who may prioritize the customer's order over others and invest extra time and effort in providing exceptional service, only to end up receiving little or no tip at all.

This can be especially common in food delivery services, where customers may promise a large tip to ensure their order is delivered quickly or with extra care, but then either reduce the tip after receiving the service or not leave a tip at all.

Many gig economy workers have spoken out against tip baiting, stating that it is unfair and exploitative. Some platforms have taken steps to combat tip baiting by only showing the actual tip amount after the service has been provided, or by allowing service providers to report instances of tip baiting and have the customer's account flagged.

Overall, tip baiting is seen as a dishonest and harmful practice that can negatively impact gig workers who rely on tips as a significant portion of their income.