Restaurants and bars which try to charge twice for gratuities have been given a tip by Government - carry on and it could cost $10,000 and six months in jail.

The Consumer Affairs Department has been flooded with complaints from tourists and locals who have been misled into tipping twice.

Chief Executive Officer Karen Marshall said her department had put around a warning after discovering establishments across the Island were using misleading credit card slips which solicited a tip, despite already automatically adding 15 percent to the bill.

Ms Marshall said: "I don't think it's deliberate, they are not being fraudulent. They just have to update their equipment and get rid of the section asking for tips.

"It doesn't take much for someone to change the equipment."

Staff are advised to cross out the tip section on the slip in the meantime. She said more than 100 complaints had been lodged in the past year. "We have a very thick file."

She said US tourists who were not used to automatically paying 15 percent for service were paying tips and then discovering they had been ripped off.

"They are resentful because no-one pointed it out," Ms Marshall said. "I am sure the Tourism Department gets a lot of complaints about this. For tourists it's a really big issue."

Ms Marshall said restaurant staff should use common sense when they saw the additional tip came to 15 percent but she said increasingly staff were relying on tips to make up their wages.

Asked if staff were deliberately turning a blind eye to get the double payment she said: "You would hate to think that would be the case."

But the fine under the hard-hitting Consumer Protection Act of 1999 will fall on the establishment for soliciting and taking tips twice so businesses and consumers are being warned to wise up.

Some confused tourists fooled by the credit card slip were also leaving tips on the table meaning they had tipped three times said Ms Marshall.

La Trattoria Manager Nicky Russo said his restaurant did not have space for an extra tip on the card slip and if customers were keen to pay extra the head waiter was summoned and the slip amended.

"I know some restaurants take two tips and it's wrong - you are ripping off people," he said.

D'Mikado manager Alex Py said his restaurant still used the old machines which printed receipts asking for an extra tip.

However he added: "We are trying to get rid of that. What happens is when we present the cheque we remind the customer that grats are already included."

He said this information was also printed on the menus. He said: "I am very aware of this problem. To me it doesn't sound good to get 15 percent gratuities and still hope for extra."

Ms Marshall said customers were within their rights to not tip even the traditional 15 percent for bad service.

She said: "It's not the law that you have to pay 15 percent. If the menu says 15 percent will be added to your bill you are agree to pay for service."However she said if the service was really bad the customer should summon the manager and tell them they didn't want to pay.

"That's what the whole thing is about. The sad thing is tips are becoming part of people's wages but that should not really be. They are fighting for that 15 percent."