Outrage after airport self-service checkout asks for 18% tip

People are outraged once again by out-of-control tipping culture after an airport self-service checkout asked for an 18 percent tip.

Nearly 80 percent of consumers said tipping practices have become ridiculous in a March study from restaurant tech company Popmenu. Now, Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey has become the lightning rod.

“Anyone else being asked to tip…nobody?” Clay Moss, a doctor who shares health videos on social media, asked in the caption of a recent Instagram video.

Moss filmed himself buying a bottle of water for $6.49 at a kiosk with no worker in sight. He then showed the screen at self-checkout, suggesting an 18 percent tip.

“Who is this automatic 18 percent tip that I have to click out of for?” Moss asked his viewers. “Who am I tipping here? Is this what we’ve come to?”

Social media users aired their grievances with tipping culture in the comment section of Moss’ video, with one saying, “So sick of it. Wish they had NEGATIVE TIP option for irritating me.”

“Auto gratuity in a self-checkout is madness,” another said.

“My husband and I were just talking about this the other day… wildly out of control,” a third wrote.

“At a self-checkout is INSANE,” someone else commented.

Amid the backlash, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said the hospitality company that manages concessions at Newark, OTG, will remove the tipping prompt “immediately.”

“Tipping prompts have no place at self-checkout kiosks, and we have previously worked with OTG to ensure customers do not receive those prompts,” a Port Authority spokesperson told Nexstar.

“We have contacted OTG about the kiosk shown in the video and expect the tipping option to be removed immediately. We will also confirm that no other self-checkout kiosks are prompting customers for tips.”

The Independent has reached out to OTG for comment.

Despite people feeling disgruntled over tipping culture, 59 percent of consumers in Popmenu’s study said they feel compelled to leave a tip when a digital screen asks for one. But this number is down from 66 percent in September 2025.