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Instacart and DoorDash’s Tip Policies Are Delivering Outrage

nytimes.com

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Re: Instacart and DoorDash’s Tip Policies Are Delivering Outrage

#251

Post by Judgmentality »

Game_Ender wrote: post #244
coffee wrote: post #243

> ...couriers have braved the elements, gotten by on meager wages and dealt with annoying customers, growling dogs and fifth-floor walk-ups, all for the chance of a big tip from a happy customer. This is not how I experience it working, in my area, with sites like GrubHub and the others. They ask for a tip UPFRONT, before delivery. I usually like to tip cash (for obvious reasons). There is an option for this, and the…

This sounds like fine model to me, pay more, get faster service. The key should be transparency and a minimum service level, ie. they should lay enough by default that every order will get picked up.

There's also the issue of tipping for service before it's been rendered. So you might pay a big tip and still receive shitty service, and now you have to deal with customer support hoping to get a refund.

Re: Instacart and DoorDash’s Tip Policies Are Delivering Outrage

#252

Post by coffee »

supershazwi wrote: post #249
Game_Ender wrote: post #244

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This sounds like fine model to me, pay more, get faster service. The key should be transparency and a minimum service level, ie. they should lay enough by default that every order will get picked up.

I'm not a customer of either services since I'm not in the US but tipping upfront before you even receive the service seems a little odd. Doesn't one tip for getting an outstanding over-the-top customer service and in order to do that, one should undergo the entire workflow till receiving the goods?

You are correct.

Re: Instacart and DoorDash’s Tip Policies Are Delivering Outrage

#253

Post by sjjshzvuiajhz »

Game_Ender wrote: post #244
coffee wrote: post #243

> ...couriers have braved the elements, gotten by on meager wages and dealt with annoying customers, growling dogs and fifth-floor walk-ups, all for the chance of a big tip from a happy customer. This is not how I experience it working, in my area, with sites like GrubHub and the others. They ask for a tip UPFRONT, before delivery. I usually like to tip cash (for obvious reasons). There is an option for this, and the…

This sounds like fine model to me, pay more, get faster service. The key should be transparency and a minimum service level, ie. they should lay enough by default that every order will get picked up.

The issue as described here is that the service captures most of the value of the tip, so the drivers are wasting their effort when they rush to complete tipped orders.

Re: Instacart and DoorDash’s Tip Policies Are Delivering Outrage

#254

Post by chipotle_coyote »

Apocryphon wrote: post #133
Fede_V wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I totally agree with this, and I think this makes the point that social outrage can sometimes play a positive role. In an ideal world, we could get people to act ethically because it's the right thing to do: if we can't do that, at least we can appeal to their self interest and point out how horribly this could backfire if people found out.

This is also literally the claim that libertarians use to justify deregulation. "We don't need laws, if a company does bad things consumer would just naturally avoid them!" One would hope laissez-faire proponents are siding with the angry workers and disgusted customers in this case.

Consumers don't generally have sufficient information to avoid bad actors. Classic market theory, especially in its pop culture form, seems to largely ignore information imbalance -- market efficiency presumes buyers can make informed decisions, but sellers have no incentive to provide buyers with honest and complete information unless they believe doing so will result in a sale. Regulations that address this information imbalance arguably make markets more efficient, and I tend to be suspicious of any anti-regulation argument which takes the form of "compelling sellers to disclose information to consumers will raise prices and is therefore anti-consumer."

Re: Instacart and DoorDash’s Tip Policies Are Delivering Outrage

#255

Post by sjjshzvuiajhz »

coffee wrote: post #243

> ...couriers have braved the elements, gotten by on meager wages and dealt with annoying customers, growling dogs and fifth-floor walk-ups, all for the chance of a big tip from a happy customer. This is not how I experience it working, in my area, with sites like GrubHub and the others. They ask for a tip UPFRONT, before delivery. I usually like to tip cash (for obvious reasons). There is an option for this, and the…

I wonder if you added a note stating that you planned to tip in cash, whether the drivers could see that and give you better service.

Re: Instacart and DoorDash’s Tip Policies Are Delivering Outrage

#256

Post by cialowicz »

geoelectric wrote: post #185
rconti wrote: post #104

I've never used Instacart, but I've used GrubHub and DoorDash and the like a couple of times -- I can never remember which one I have an account for, or which one has the restaurant I want, so it's always a hodgepodge. But one thing is clear as day. When I use DoorDash, the tip box says "100% of tip goes to Dasher". Look, I know all of these places either charge me a service fee, or if I'm not being charged a service…

I quit tipping on DD as soon as I found this out about a month ago because it'd almost always be less than $4.50, so wouldn't affect the dasher's bottom line anyway. If I start again it'll be cash, but I don't typically carry that in small bills. But I'm pissed . I've been a heavy DD customer for years and I'm an excellent tipper. Apparently I've been offsetting DD's costs for quite awhile now thinking "100% goes to…

You quit tipping, but you haven't stopped using the service?

Re: Instacart and DoorDash’s Tip Policies Are Delivering Outrage

#257

Post by _ah »

geoelectric wrote: post #185
rconti wrote: post #104

I've never used Instacart, but I've used GrubHub and DoorDash and the like a couple of times -- I can never remember which one I have an account for, or which one has the restaurant I want, so it's always a hodgepodge. But one thing is clear as day. When I use DoorDash, the tip box says "100% of tip goes to Dasher". Look, I know all of these places either charge me a service fee, or if I'm not being charged a service…

I quit tipping on DD as soon as I found this out about a month ago because it'd almost always be less than $4.50, so wouldn't affect the dasher's bottom line anyway. If I start again it'll be cash, but I don't typically carry that in small bills. But I'm pissed . I've been a heavy DD customer for years and I'm an excellent tipper. Apparently I've been offsetting DD's costs for quite awhile now thinking "100% goes to…

In other news, 100% of lottery taxes go to the school system. Strange that we don't see the same outrage for the same shady tricks practiced elsewhere.

Re: Instacart and DoorDash’s Tip Policies Are Delivering Outrage

#258

Post by sjjshzvuiajhz »

supershazwi wrote: post #249
Game_Ender wrote: post #244

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This sounds like fine model to me, pay more, get faster service. The key should be transparency and a minimum service level, ie. they should lay enough by default that every order will get picked up.

I'm not a customer of either services since I'm not in the US but tipping upfront before you even receive the service seems a little odd. Doesn't one tip for getting an outstanding over-the-top customer service and in order to do that, one should undergo the entire workflow till receiving the goods?

In the US tipping is standard, not for over-the-top service.

In general, higher pay for better quality goods and services is part of a negotiated sticker price. Tipping is the anamoly here. In the DoorDash context, if the user were given the option to tip after delivery, they’d most likely just forget about the app once they got their food and never tip. So there’d be little incentive for the drivers to work hard for a good tip.

Re: Instacart and DoorDash’s Tip Policies Are Delivering Outrage

#259

Post by megy »

resters wrote: post #25

Why doesn't this problem exist when I order something from Amazon? Because there is no absurd idea that I should be tipping the UPS guy or anyone else involved in fulfilling my order. It makes much more sense for InstaCart to simply collect star ratings and offer bonuses for the employees who are going above and beyond. Considering how often the shopper has to call me about replacements, parking outside my building,…

I think tipping someone who delivers food to you is one of the only areas where tipping makes sense.

Re: Instacart and DoorDash’s Tip Policies Are Delivering Outrage

#260

Post by megy »

maxxxxx wrote: post #88
bluedino wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not uncommon to tip your UPS/FedEx delivery person, or your USPS carrier. At least around the holidays.

The tip you give to the UPS driver is a real tip for good service, not a necessary wage supplement to keep them from starving.

How is it good service? Does the driver have any control over the traffic?
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