I am extremely disappointed with the way a recent gift card redemption was handled at your spa.

When I originally purchased the gift card, I specifically asked if a 20% tip could be included and was told it could be. I wanted the tip to be included so that the person receiving the gift would not have to worry about paying anything additional when he came in for his appointment.

I also went in for the foot spa the same day the recipient went in and let them know I was going to pay for mine and gave them the gift card for the other person. Unfortunately, when I redeemed the gift card, I was made to feel uncomfortable and was essentially shamed for not leaving a tip. I tried explaining several times that the tip had already been included with the gift card, but I was repeatedly told that it had not been paid.

The situation became so frustrating that I had to locate and provide the original receipt to prove that the 20% tip had, in fact, already been paid.

This was incredibly disappointing and embarrassing, particularly because the entire purpose of including the tip in advance was to make the experience easy and enjoyable for the gift recipient. Instead, he left feeling as though he had done something wrong by not tipping, when the tip had already been paid by me.

I understand that mistakes can happen, but I am very concerned about how this was handled. Your staff should be able to accurately review gift card transactions and, if there is any question about whether gratuity was included, resolve it without making the customer feel guilty or embarrassed.

I hope you will take this situation seriously and review how gift cards with prepaid gratuity are documented and communicated to your staff to prevent another customer from being put in this position.