How likely is Uber to ban me if I do a credit-card charge back for food that was never delivered?

[Reply]

@GESancMan

In my neck o’ the woods, Uber Eats requires a PIN at delivery.

Is this an option for you, @Velocity, if you do decide to keep using UberEats after this? (I wouldn’t)

@Meatwater

I used Ubereats to get food and it never got delivered, and when I demanded a refund they gave the same excuse saying they can’t refund me. I called my bank and refuted the charge, now I can’t use UberEats or plain Uber

This is such bullshit it makes me mad.

It’s bad enough that these gig work companies go to great lengths to exploit everyone they possibly can (restaurants, drivers, customers, taxpayers, governments). The least they could do is at least take responsibility for their deliveries.

FWIW, I’ve used DoorDash dozens (maybe hundreds) of times over a decade or so, in cities all across the US. Of those, I’ve only had a handful of misdeliveries (maybe 4-6 total), but they’ve fixed the issue EVERY single time — refunding at least the missing item(s), sometimes the whole order, and sometimes with an additional “sorry” credit on top of that.

It’s surprising that the UberEats customer service is THAT much worse, but if that’s really the case, maybe switch to DoorDash for future orders? Or see if you have other delivery services available in your area.

I certainly would stop using UberEats after one such experience if they don’t take ownership of the delivery.

@LSLGuy

The delivery services do not assume responsibility to actually get the correct thing to the correct place.

@Roderick_Femm

I also don’t use food delivery services

I think this is a difference between not just package vs food deliveries, but maybe even individual companies (like UberEats vs DoorDash).

One time a Doordash driver dropped off my food a block away, at another house with the right number but wrong address (maybe an innocent GPS error, no idea).

I could see them on the live map the whole time. After the misdelivery, I messaged the driver to let them know it was the wrong place. They told me sorry, they’re busy, go get it yourself. I asked Doordash Support for help and they immediately refunded me the full amount and said they’d discipline the driver. Then my friend walked over to the other block to get the dinner, so we also got a free meal out of it.

Another time, the driver simply never picked up the dinner (as confirmed by the restaurant). I messaged support, they said sorry, placed a new order for me, and assigned another driver to it, expedited. I got it a little while later, with an additional credit for the inconvenience.

This was all just in the online chat support, no waiting for a phone or escalating to a manager or anything.

Doordash is evil in your typical gig economy ways, but at least their customer service has always been good in my experience.

[Velocity]

I’m not quite sure. Sometimes UberEats requires a PIN, sometimes it doesn’t. It’s quite arbitrary. I don’t know if it depends on region. And whenever I contact UberEats about a driver’s behavior, they always say “We are unable to contact the driver.” I guess drivers are independent contractors, not employees.

[hajario]

@Reply

FWIW, I’ve used DoorDash dozens (maybe hundreds) of times over a decade or so, in cities all across the US. Of those, I’ve only had a handful of misdeliveries (maybe 4-6 total), but they’ve fixed the issue EVERY single time — refunding at least the missing item(s), sometimes the whole order, and sometimes with an additional “sorry” credit on top of that.

Me too but Grubhub. I’ve had more mistakes than you, mostly restaurant mistakes like stuff being prepared incorrectly. One time a driver gave me someone else’s order from the same restaurant (like I’m Timmy but they got the order for someone named Tammy) and that took a while to explain but I did get a refund. Once I came home from an overnight trip and found someone else’s Taco Bell on my porch from the night before. Presumably they were refunded.

[Reply]

@Velocity

And whenever I contact UberEats about a driver’s behavior, they always say “We are unable to contact the driver.” I guess drivers are independent contractors, not employees.

That’s truly a crap excuse on UberEats’s part. It’s a flabbergastingly ridiculous response.

DoorDash drivers are independent contractors too, but they:

• Are always tracked on GPS
• Have a built-in two-way messaging system in the Doordash app, for you to talk to the driver without revealing your own phone number
• Are held responsible by Doordash itself ← this is the big one

The business relationship you have is not with any one driver in particular, but with Doordash, the company. If something goes wrong, Doordash takes care of you.

If UberEats can’t figure out what their drivers are doing, can’t contact them, and refuse to refund you… lol… they are simply a shit service. Trust and safety are huge parts of any operation like this. Can you imagine what would happen if someone got assaulted by their Uber driver and the company’s only response was “They’re an independent contractor. We can’t contact them. No refunds”? Ridiculous

Guess I know which delivery service to not use…

[Reply]

For what it’s worth, though, others have also have had terrible experiences with Doordash: https://www.trustpilot.com/review/doordash.com

12,000 reviews, 93% of which are 1-star.

UberEats at least has 2.3 stars: https://www.trustpilot.com/review/ubereats.com

shrug Maybe I’ve just been lucky, or maybe the happy customers don’t bother to leave reviews there.

[hajario]

Grubhub is only 54% 1-star. That’s my choice but really only because I get free Grubhub+ with my Amazon Prime membership.

[I_Love_Me_Vol.I]

@Beckdawrek

From what I get (YouTube) the delivery persons are ass-y!!Asses if they don’t get a nice tip from your order,

IMO, one shouldn’t judge all delivery drivers by cherry-picked bad situations that appear in a YouTube video.

[Reply]

@Velocity

But wouldn’t the driver not know the tip amount until or after they’ve delivered the food?

On this note, no, they see it upfront and can pick and choose whether to accept the order. If you don’t tip well, multiple drivers could reject your order before a more desperate one finally agrees to do it (or steals the food).

[Beckdawrek]

I’m not judging anyone. I’ve never used a food delivery service.

I just know in any food service situation tips mean everything.

If they’re showing it on YouTube, I do realize those vids are curated to shock and awe. Not dumb.

[SuntanLotion]

Thats what happened with mine ( grubhub). I tipped $2 because I am poor without income. Hope they enjoyed the coffee.

[fedman1]

I know when I use Uber I can message or call driver, and communications also go through Uber (not Uber Eats), and there’s a visible map showing me where driver is at

[TokyoBayer]

We occasionally used UberEats and Panda Express in Taiwan and didn’t have any problems.

Since we moved back to Japan, there aren’t any services in our area.

The nice thing about the system in Taiwan is that the delivery fee is calculated by the company and there isn’t any tipping. IIRC, there was a minimum amount for the order

[Meatwater]

@Reply

It’s surprising that the UberEats customer service is THAT much worse, but if that’s really the case, maybe switch to DoorDash for future orders? Or see if you have other delivery services available in your area.

I now use Grubhub (in tandem with Amazon Prime) and they haven’t wronged me yet!

[SuntanLotion]

Grubhub cheated me; first time user, saying we have had too many problems with your account.

[needscoffee]

@SuntanLotion

Grubhub cheated me; first time user, saying we have had too many problems with your account

Did someone else order from it using your account? One of your old beaus?

[SuntanLotion]

I had never used a delivery service before that.

[TokyoBayer]

@TokyoBayer

We occasionally used UberEats and Panda Express in Taiwan and didn’t have any problems.

It was Food Panda, not Panda Express, of course.

Food Panda is a delivery service in Asia.

My wife reminded me that Food Panda charged more for the items, sometimes had a delivery fee and had a minimum order.

[Reply]

I bet the cultural influence in those societies outweigh the differences between delivery services, though. The work ethic and approach to service are totally different. It’s hard to imagine a driver there absconding with your meal.

Oh, and I think Food Panda is also available in some Asian communities in the US (like in Seattle or the SF Bay Area). Wonder how it is…

And too bad Panda Express isn’t available in Taiwan I’d love to introduce my parents to it. They thought Taco Bell was bizarre enough; I’d love to introduce them to the American idea of Chinese food…