Running Late--what is ettique for calling ahead?

[Ottakee]

Just wondering what is the ettiquette if you are running late for something.

 

For instance, this week we got stuck at the mall in a line and then traffic and were 5 minutes late for my daughter's doctors appointment. I did call ahead to let them know we were running late. We had a set 25 minute appointment so I just knew I would do my talking in 20 minutes.

 

Today I ran just 2-3 minutes late to get my horse from the trainers (traffic and fog) but didn't call as I figured that wasn't a big deal and only a few minutes.

 

I had a friend though that was supposed to come and ride horses here. She was over 1 hour late coming yet never called to say she was going to be late----she is only 5 minutes away by car and 25 by horse. My girls had their horses ready to ride when she said she would be here, rode around, and ended up putting their horses away before they even got her as it was hot and the horses were tired by then.

 

If you are running late do you call to let the person/office know? If so, for 5 minutes? 10? 15? I am not a big one for running late.

[LisaKinVA]

5 minutes or less, I don't usually call (unless it has to do with travel mates leaving, or the doctor's).

 

Over 5 min., I call with an estimated arrival time. If for some reason traffic is worse than anticipated, I call to update on progress. (My #1 reason for being late is traffic. For example, we live 15 min. from the YMCA. However, due to road construction or accidents, that 15 min can easily be 45. We almost always left for practice 45 min ahead of time. Same with the doctor's.)

[NanceXToo]

I would probably call if I was going to be 15 minutes or more late, in most instances.

[katemary63]

5 minutes or less, I don't usually call (unless it has to do with travel mates leaving, or the doctor's).

 

Over 5 min., I call with an estimated arrival time.

 

:iagree:

[plain jane]

I usually call if I'm going to be more than 5 minutes late for an apt and more than 10 late if I'm meeting a friend somewhere.

 

I've stopped calling my dr office, however, because apparently they are intolerant of 5 min late. :001_huh: I can walk in 5 min late and be seen, but if I call and say I'll be 5 min late, they tell me not to bother coming in at all. :glare: Of course, my doctor is *never* running on time, even for the first apt. back after lunch or first thing in the morning, she's always 10-15 min late. :glare:

[Diane in CO]

I would probably call if I was going to be 15 minutes or more late, in most instances.

 

:iagree:

 

 

Diane

[AngieW in Texas]

5 minutes or less, I don't usually call (unless it has to do with travel mates leaving, or the doctor's).

 

Over 5 min., I call with an estimated arrival time. If for some reason traffic is worse than anticipated, I call to update on progress. (My #1 reason for being late is traffic. For example, we live 15 min. from the YMCA. However, due to road construction or accidents, that 15 min can easily be 45. We almost always left for practice 45 min ahead of time. Same with the doctor's.)

 

Me too. I've never done this with a doctor's appointment because our doctor is just a 5 minute drive away. I have done this with the dentist and the orthodontist, although both times I ended up being less than 5 minutes late. I had the potential to be much more than 5 minutes late due to a wreck on the road ahead of me. I try to time it so that we arrive 5-10 minutes early for the dentist (typically 30 minutes away) and ortho (typically 45 minutes away).

[athena1277]

5 minutes or less, I don't usually call (unless it has to do with travel mates leaving, or the doctor's).

 

Over 5 min., I call with an estimated arrival time. If for some reason traffic is worse than anticipated, I call to update on progress. (My #1 reason for being late is traffic. For example, we live 15 min. from the YMCA. However, due to road construction or accidents, that 15 min can easily be 45. We almost always left for practice 45 min ahead of time. Same with the doctor's.)

 

I read your post without looking at who posted it. I thought to myself "that sounds like around here!" Then I realized that you also live in NoVa! :lol:

[duckens]

Are you allowed 10minutes leeway for every child that you have? :D:D:D

 

For example: 4 kids means that you can show up for church 40 minutes past starting time, and still not be considered "late"?

 

--duckens

who telephones even if she is going to be on time (for non-professional commitments)

[Desert Rat]

My rule is 10 minutes.

[Gwenhwyfar]

Depends.

 

I wouldn't bother calling our doctor's office for 5/10 minutes, mainly because they never answer the phone & the voicemail is ALWAYS "full".. I'd just arrive & apologize.

 

For other appts, I'd call for 5/10 min late or more.

 

For friends, it depends on the person and what the plan is. For one of my friends, "come over around 2pm" means "come over sometime between 2 and 3" - so I wouldn't text/call unless we weren't gonna make it until after 3 :laugh: ... for most of them, I'd text/call if we were gonna be 15 min late or more.

[Ottakee]

I did call this doctor as she is a peds. psychiatrist and always right on time. I just wanted them to know we were on our way as I called from the mall and even though it is almost across the street from her office you have to turn right, then turn back left, then make 2 more rights to get there and I didn't know how long it would take.

 

I was just a little bit bugged that the friend that was an hour late coming never bothered to call and then seemed a bit miffed that my girls were done riding when they got here. Considering she left her house 40 minutes after she was supposed to be here, she did know she was going to be late.

[Ester Maria]

I was taught the rule of "academic quarter of an hour" - 15 minutes. Tardiness up to 15 minutes is socially acceptable (and widely practiced :D) in nearly all cases, and sometimes even "extended" to 20, but that's in cases where your presence isn't vital (for example, the actual academic context - being late to a lecture).

 

Colloquially, when we say we'll meet at 1, we actually mean "somewhere between 1:00 and 1:15" because of this unspoken rule. I never call for tardiness up to 15 minutes.

 

The cases in which for some reason you're supposed to be more punctual than that, I try not to be over 5 minutes late.

 

Now, regarding the etiquette of calling - ideally, it's as early as possible if it's more than that socially acceptable late time. If meeting somebody and you suspect you'll be 15+ minutes late, call before the other party has left to meet you and just postpone it for 15+ minutes - regardless of whether you'll actually be late or no.

 

Americans are worse with this punctuality thing though. Unless they know me well, I call them for being late even within those 15 minutes - or they call me, at best worried and at worse furious. :D

[Dawn in OH]

I don't have a cell phone, so if I'm running late after I've already left the house, it's really hard for me to call.

 

If I'm at home and running late I will call. I agree with the 15 minute thing. The thing is, If I'm running late, it's going to be more than 15 minutes...it takes me that long to get all the kids into the car and buckled up.