“The DoorDash driver then wrote: ‘It’s heavily raining out here if you can add compensation that would be greatly appreciated and helpful.’
Rob added: ‘Driving more than 10 miles to get your food delivered.”
Sounds like lightly veiled extortion to me.
Here is the likely scenario from his side of the app. He needed the money, probably a slow time in the app. So he took the order when it popped up on his screen. It was probably 5-7 miles drive to the restaurant for him and then the last few miles to the customer. It truly sucks how this works for the delivery folks. I tried it with Uber for a few weeks and sometimes people order far away from themselves or the orders come up at distances. Sucks, but that how it works.
I tried the Poplin Laundry Service and the first few offers were well over an hour away from me. Other Poplin folks viewed it as the /pay your dues newby. Dropped that side hustle real fast.
Second, this is the tipping part. If the weather is bad should a delivery person expect an added tip? Well, honestly...it is nice to get even a ‘thank you’ for coming out in such weather. I always tip well if it is a snowy night and pizza is being delivered. Truth is...they don’t have to be out there doing delivery or maybe they are poor desperate souls too trying to keep the lights on at home.
DoorDasher get anywhere from $2 to $10 base depending on the order, distance, etec. They keep all tips. They don’t get a cut of the delivery fee, that expensive fee is for DoorDash. So let’s say this guy was at $10 base for this order...Ok that’s $15 for his time and effort. But if this order was $2 that $5 tip probably made his effort a loss. Logistically he should have declined the order.
Honestly the lady’s response regarding the $5 tip raises the question how much was the total order? Should the driver have hinted he wanted more of a tip? No, that’s just rude. If he felt that way after picking up the order on his app, he should have declined it. And yes...drivers get dinged by DoorDash for declining orders. They say they don’t, but incentivize maintaining a 70% acceptance rating. I once had an order from a nearby restaurant only to find out after picking it up...it was 20 miles out my range. 40 miles round trip minimal tip. It is just the nature of service.