DoorDash Is Misleading Customers About the Price of Their Food

Getting food delivered almost always costs more than going to pick it up yourself; consider it a laziness tax. But some customers of delivery startup DoorDash feel they're being misled when it comes to the true cost of their meals, Bloomberg reports.

DoorDash, which launched in 2014, services 15 metro areas in the U.S.; like many other delivery apps, it employs couriers to pick up food from restaurants and deliver it to customers. But beyond the usual delivery fees, taxes, and tips customers will shell out for, DoorDash also inflates the cost of each menu item — often unbeknownst to customers. For example, a sandwich that costs $10.99 directly from a restaurant might be listed as $14.95 on DoorDash, and the app gives customers no indication they're being upcharged. As Bloomberg notes, "Other delivery apps, such as Postmates and Square Inc.'s Caviar, typically list the same prices as those on the restaurants' menus."

DoorDash CEO Tony Xu says they've pledged to be more transparent about its upcharges going forward: "The company is working on a new version of its app that breaks out DoorDash's fees from meal prices," therefore showing users exactly how much extra cash they'll be parting with by using DoorDash.

Beyond potentially misleading customers about the price of their food, DoorDash's pricing policies have also drawn the ire of some restaurants, who say the company is inflating their menu prices without giving them a cut of the profits. DoorDash has already gotten on some restaurants' bad sides for other practices, too: The startup was sued by In-N-Out last fall for using its logo and delivering its food without permission.