Chaos in Spain as Majorca restaurants tell tourists 'splitting the bill's now banned'

When you go to a restaurant, there’s one common habit you might do when it comes to time to pay but this will no longer be allowed. Majorca is a popular place for Brits to holiday and over summer, it can get extremely busy.

Restaurants have recently had problems with hiring staff leaving them understaffed at the busiest times of the year. With this in mind, to make things easier for staff, many restaurants have made one change so that they are able to run efficiently and smoothly. Although the change will be beneficial to them, it might not be so welcomed by customers.

The president of the CAEB Restaurants Association in Majorca, Juanmi Ferrer, said there are some restaurants that no longer accept customers paying separately. 

He said: "There is one bill per table and it is up to the customers how they deal with the payment.

"Some don't want to pay for the wine, others specifically ask to pay for their own dish. 

"This gets complicated for the staff, and there can be items that no one is charged for. It is time-consuming and even more so if the bill doesn't add up."

Restaurants are thinking of ways to create less work for waiters and waitresses, with this being one solution.

The Majorca Daily Bulletin reports that at the most, bills could be divided equally.

Ferrer adds: "We understand that customers want to divide the bill, but there are much easier and more convenient methods, such as Bizum, which is free and is automatic."

With restaurant staff already pushed to their maximum, making the bills process quicker and less complicated could help staff.

Customers may be disappointed to hear this but Ferrer recognises there are other ways they can split the bill and work out individual costs between them.

The time involved with paying bills, Ferrer says, adds to already heavy workloads, which are partly the consequence of a lack of staff.