I got a really great question from a reader today. She was wondering how much is appropriate to tip your Newspaper carrier.
This can be a loaded question because there are so many variables to how much I would personally tip. If you are getting a Sunday only, or a weekend subscription- like most of us are. A tip of anywhere from $10-$30 would be appropriate.
To determine how much you would like to tip, think about a few things:
– Do my papers always arrive on time and without damage?
– Has the carrier had to deliver in inclement weather multiple times?
If you have had problems with receiving your paper on time, or not getting it at all. Leave a tip with a note kindly explaining the importance of getting your paper. If they know they are likely to receive a tip from you in the future, you can bet they will work harder and making sure you are taking care of.
You should receive a letter or an envelope from your newspaper carrier sometime soon- if you haven’t already. They will normally have an address to send a tip to. If they don’t, you can call up your newspaper company and ask for an address to send a tip to or add it to your bill instead.
Remember that our newspaper carriers get up when it is still dark, brave the cold, rain and snow to get us our newspapers so we can have our coupons! So, if you choose to tip anyone this Holiday season, it should be your Newspaper Carrier!
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Lisa M
I had no idea you were supposed to tip. Thanks for letting me know! I'm new to the newspaper thing!
Katie
I was actually a newspaper carrier when I was younger, I tip at Christmas was always so nice. You have to remember they deliver the newspaper EVERYDAY, rain or snow or holiday.
Raygan
How are you supposed to leave a tip. I only get the Sunday paper and I've never actually seen my newspaper carrie. I am supposed to leave an envelope outside???
CHRISTIE
I am a carrier right now. Just remember that there are many people that do this as a second job, and many SINGLE mothers that are just trying to make ends meet. Also, many people that have been laid off do this to help pay the bills. I am a stay at home mom during the day with 2 young ones. I go to bed around 11 or so after spending some time with my hubby after the kids go to bed. Then, I get up at 1:30am and do 2 routes, get home at 6am, then get a couple hours of sleep before the little ones wake up. Then, remember the housework and cooking and laundry…… We go on very little sleep WITHOUT ANY DAYS OFF!! So, please be kind, and understanding when your paper is possibly late. Oh, AND DON'T COMPLAIN!! We only get paid 5 cents to deliver your paper, but CHARGED $2 for each complaint you make. If you have a problem, please call and leave a MEMO, not a complaint. Thanks…..
The Sessions
I agree Christie! My husband does 2 routes combined into 1 its also his 2nd job as well! I help him on Sunday with 230 papers. He actually hit black ice Thanksgiving morning on his lower route while I was doing the upper and he slid into a curb causing 500 dollars in damage cause he couldnt stop or turn, so newspaper carriers also sacrifice their cars as well as sleep, gas in the car and no days off like Christie said! Christie we have alot of complainers on our routes! Christie do you deliver the SL Trib and News like us?
~Ruth
I think I'm going to apply this for my UPS driver. She is so nice and delivers something 2 – 3 days a week. Thanks so much for this tip!
tirstie
The Sessions:Yes, I do the Trib and News. I have 600 papers on Sundays…and don't even let me get into that. Uggh. I am sorry to hear about the damage to your car, I recently had something similar happen to me while doing my route. Sometimes it seems with as little as we get paid to do this job, that it costs more money out of pocket to keep it than it does putting into your pocket. But, when you have bills to pay, you gotta try.
Melanie
Our teenage boys deliver the paper EVERY morning, rain, snow, holidays, etc. Tips are very appreciated, especially since newspaper carriers don't get paid very much to deliver papers. Thanks for this post.
Raygan
I'm still just wondering how to leave a tip? I always leave a present or tip for my mail carrier and now this is the first year I've ever gotten the newspaper and I would like to do the same for our newspaper carrier. With the mail carrier I just leave it in the mailbox, but what should I do to ensure that our newspaper person gets theirs. Like I said before I've never actually seen our carrier and I guess getting up at 7:00 a.m. is still not earlier enough to see them. Any suggestions on where and how I could leave my carrier a tip??? Any help would be appreciated.
Melea
Raygan- I wrote how to do that in the post. There should be an envelope you will receive or you can call up the newspaper to tip them as well.
s.b
Yes I run 5 routes that spans over 100 miles and 5 zip codes. At our d.c its 3$ for a miss 10$ to miss a Sunday only 10$ for tv books. 20$ fotr wall streets usa todays and new york times. And yes we do run late. The trucks that bring us our papers that we roll can be up to 2hrs late and sometimes worse. We break down and have problems. No days off. If we are sick we are still running. So yes if there’s an issue call and leave a memo and a number to reach you if you would like to discus how we may help you. Or to arrange a tip. There’s also the option of calling the sentinel and telling them you would like to tip your carrier.