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Wait a minute... wait. Those service fees I've been opting to pay haven't been going to the shoppers/drivers who are processing my order? On my last order I ask
by rm999 10y ago
Wait a minute... wait. Those service fees I've been opting to pay haven't been going to the shoppers/drivers who are processing my order? On my last order I asked the shopper to specifically go out of her way to check on an out of stock item. I did this with the assumption that my 7 dollar service fee was going directly to her, and that she would therefore be happy to go out of her way. When the delivery person (I think the same as the shopper) came by and I smiled at her, I thought that was a "we're square", not a "sorry for not tipping you" smile.
I'm livid. It's on instacart to pay fair wages with the delivery fees if they think it's a problem. Their misleading double fee system is unfair to both me and (more importantly) the people who are directly providing me with service. I'm sick of the uber-ish "on-demand" service culture abusing their non-employees under my dime.
edit: funny thing is, I just watched the infamous episode of Kitchen Nightmares about Amy's Baking Company. In the episode, Gordon Ramsay becomes furious when he finds out that the customers' tips aren't going to the servers. He goes into the restaurant and asks the patrons if they would have tipped if they knew this and everyone agrees no. The owner meekly explains in a follow-up episode that he does this so he can pay the waiters a "fair fee". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amy's_Baking_Company https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amy's_Baking_Company. This episode utterly destroyed Amy and her husband's company. Instacart, I love your service. It's changed the way I grocery shop and I planned on being a regular, high-value customer. Please don't make me question my decision on this.
- openmosix 10y agoI've learned this once talking to one of the shoppers. I never tipped again after that / I tip in cash for the good ones once they deliver at my door.
- gkop 10y agoThe shoppers do not deliver to your door FYI.
- Gargoyle 10y agoIt's varied over time. Sometimes I've talked to them on the phone as they shopped and it was indeed the same person that delivered to my door. Then for a while it wasn't, then it was again. From conversations with the shoppers, it also varies by store chain. Different chains have different deals with Instacart as to how the shoppers can perform their jobs, including if it's the same person delivering. My impression is that when they get what they want, Instacart has shoppers that stay in the store shopping and drivers that deliver.
- myrloc 10y agoThe shoppers are not the same as the delivery people. I know this because I have worked as a shopper. While I was working for Instacart, the model of how the drivers/shoppers were tipped or paid was in flux, so I'm not sure what the current model is.
- TheCoelacanth 10y agoIt would be okay if it was split between the driver and the shopper, but Instacart is basically just tricking people into thinking that they are tipping the people serving them when they are actually just giving money to Instacart.
- vaishaksuresh 10y agoI think DoorDash does similar thing. You pay Tip, Service Fee, and Tax. It would still be ok if the food was being delivered from far off, but most of the time it is within a 2-5 mile radius. A $20 order easily becomes a $40 order.
- dawnerd 10y agoPostmates is pretty bad about that. Oh, you want someone a block away? 7.99 fee + minimum order + tip.
- strictnein 10y agoAnd didn't DoorDash just bump their fees recently? Could be just my area, but man I swear the delivery charges increased substantially in the last couple of weeks. Lots of places with $5.99 and $7.99 delivery charges attached to them.