What Is Your Opinion on Higher Prices When Ordering through Food Delivery Apps

plastererJazz on 26/04/2022 - 15:59

Hey

Obviously, the food delivery service is quite a competitive market and those major players are throwing tons of money to get more customers using their apps.

There are all kinds of promotions from different companies. cashback, discount, free delivery couple etc.

And I get that one of the reasons us using it was about convenience.

But the item price on these platforms is clearly much higher than the regular price not to mention the extra service fee and delivery fee.

My personal experience was that it averages 20% ~ 30% higher than ordering by phone.

Sometimes the promotions only offset the extra charge on orders.

So the question is what are your thoughts on this?

Would you prefer the current fee structure on these platforms?

Or would you wish regular price + a higher delivery fee?

For me, I would much rather go for restaurants with free delivery over $xx via phone.

Regard

Food & Grocery

Comments

    • AustriaBargain on 26/04/2022 - 20:56
      +3

      I stopped using Uber Eats when I noticed I was getting fatter than I'd ever been in my life.

      • ozbjunkie on 27/04/2022 - 12:29
        +2

        Yes. Yes I am. Thanks for reminding me.

        Well I'm going to waddle off to the kitchen to see what uber leftovers I have… Wish me luck, and for me to find someone that will love me for me, including my propensity to overeat.

  • Philthy on 26/04/2022 - 21:55

    order direct from the store if able…

    • orangetrain on 27/04/2022 - 09:25
      +2

      A couple nearby restaurants charge same as uberlog even for pick up. To add insult, the portions are also less compared to eating in restaurant, even for a pick up order.

      Eater beware.

  • raptormesh on 26/04/2022 - 22:13

    I've never paid for delivery. Either offset by promos or I go pick up. But then I was surrounded by restaurants.

  • kyle on 27/04/2022 - 09:10

    I tend to only pick up for fast food like Maccas, KFC and Dominos as they taste bad when delivery takes too long, but most other things, I'm willing to pay extra for the convenience and offset with annual subs and discounted gift cards and promos.

  • cupcake on 27/04/2022 - 10:00

    It's a NO from me.
    J's Kitchen prices on Uber Eats is much higher than if you were to go in yourself.

  • Ramrunner on 27/04/2022 - 11:20
    +9

    My thoughts?

    I think restaurants should stop prioritizing food delivery pick-ups over customers who take the effort to actually come in to the restaurants and make them wait stupid amounts of times for every dude with a thermobag in a hatchback to be served first.

    It's ridiculous. What's the point of having the restaurant these days? Might as well go delivery only if you're going to ignore other paying customers.

    Rant over.

    • plastererJazz on 27/04/2022 - 12:04
      +4

      with you 100% mate

      One should stop taking takeaway orders when it exceeds kitchen bandwidth to handle the orders for the people sitting inside the restaurant waiting.

      • Ramrunner on 29/04/2022 - 07:50

        Excellent - hopefully get rid of the queue of thermobag holders at my local Italian :)

  • Some Human on 27/04/2022 - 13:15
    +1

    After several mishaps with KFC and McDonald’s ordering apps, I just go to the store, order and wait. Not even willing to try menulog or Uber eats as I would probably accidentally order enough food to feed an army and only realize that after it’s arrived.

  • fredblogs on 27/04/2022 - 13:16
    +4

    I hate that they do this and don't even think it should be legal because it obscures the real prices.
    It should be: food cost (same as dine in /take away) + uber fee + delivery cost

    • Fobsessive on 27/04/2022 - 22:57
      +1

      People would see the hefty mark-up and not order

    • cunningdrew on 28/04/2022 - 12:50

      Agree with this totally. There are times I would pay it. If I am ordering Indian or Chinese and it's $70 with $20 delivery I am probably okay with that. By Maccas with $20 delivery I would struggle with. The average punter, as has been said, see's $5 for delivery and thinks they're on a deal.

      I cannot see restaurants being able to keep this this though, drastically marking up products for delivery. Imagine if Woolies or clothing stores did this so specifically. Nope.

  • momo1988 on 27/04/2022 - 13:59
    +1

    Believe it or not I have come across a few places that charge the same on the delivery platforms vs ordering direct. Unless uber/deliveroo etc have a promotion I will almost always order direct from these places.

    • Quantumcat on 27/04/2022 - 14:39

      If they charge the same for pickup why not just get Uberlog delivery? You're not losing anything then. And gaining convenience.

      • momo1988 on 27/04/2022 - 14:41

        I meant I've found a few places charging the same for the individual items. Delivery would still be subject to delivery and service fees. By picking up I'm avoiding the fees.

    • Fobsessive on 27/04/2022 - 22:58

      Same, found a few Thai/Chinese locals with Menulog prices the same as dining

  • knitwear on 27/04/2022 - 14:25
    +2

    I am happy to pay extra $2-3 (reasonably) per menu item.

    However I've also seen some restaurants taking the piss, for example the other day a fried rice costs $21.95 from Doordash, but costs $13.95 when picked up.

  • Yiddos on 27/04/2022 - 14:43
    +2

    Just like most things in life, the more hands something passes through, the more expensive it will be.

  • OzzyOzbourne on 27/04/2022 - 14:46
    +2

    Rarely order for delivery now because of the increased prices using these platforms. Used to pay the standard price plus delivery, which I was fine with, but now it's plus 20-30% plus delivery. Also it often takes upwards of an hour, the food is sometimes cold and sometimes the order is wrong.

  • apple2016 on 27/04/2022 - 14:56

    I would rather do a phone order and pick up.

  • muzzamo on 27/04/2022 - 15:01
    +3

    I seem to be in the minority here, but to me it's about user experience.

    • you are already logged in or it takes social login
    • the experience is consistent, it's optimsied for mobile, and it doesn't take too many taps, and is bug free
    • you don't need to re-enter your credit card
    • you don't have to call anyone
    • you know how far off the food is - when it is leaving, and when it's delivered
    • you know the menu is accurate, and the place is open
    • the apps hold the restaurants to KPIs - no waiting for 2.5h for a pizza on a saturday night when they never should have taken your order
    • if the order is wrong you don't need to argue/negotiate with the restaurant

    This set of small things adds up to an experience that is far better than the alternatives. Is it worth 30%? Possibly.

    • jorf on 27/04/2022 - 15:49
      +10

      You missed a few things:

      • You'll quite possibly get less food than you would have had you ordered direct
      • You don't know if your food is actually going to arrive, or whether they're going to just cancel on you an hour later, just prior to delivery, without any reason
      • You might place an order and have it cancelled at a random time later because the restaurant isn't actually open
      • If there's sudden heavy rain or a storm, you might not get your food at all
      • You might have to deal with cold food because your underpaid driver had to drop off 5 other deliveries in the opposite direction to your place first

      I hardly ever use these apps and have experienced all of the above. Definitely not worth 30% to maybe get overpriced food delivered.

      They're also ruining the restaurant experience in a lot of cases.

      • Having impatient randoms standing around your table waiting to pick an order up
      • Getting bypassed in pickup queues because you're not a delivery driver
      • Having to wait longer to be served because they're more worried about their Uber KPIs than about actually serving people
      • plastererJazz on 27/04/2022 - 17:21
        +1

        Thank you

      • ln28909 on 28/04/2022 - 01:37

        As someone that have been ordering takeout on these services everyday for over 3 months, the thing you described really doesn't happen

        1. The quantity of food is the same, some maybe more expensive than directly but some are just the same as I remembered before ordering using this service

        2. Never happen to me

        3. Will never happen, since the restaurant needs to respond to an order and this process happens within a minute, if after 1 minute and they havent respond, you can considered as there is something wrong and just cancel the order though I have not experienced this

        4. Yes, there maybe delayed here though not getting your food at all is an exaggeration

        5. Deliveroo driver only do 1 order at a time, uber eats you can pay extra for them to deliver it to you right away though given that most order will take 15 mins plus anyway, you might as well just microwave it before eating

        • jorf on 28/04/2022 - 07:46
          +3

          Cool. Here's an exchange I had with Uber about one of those things that never happens and is just an exaggeration:

          Placed an order, delivery was delayed twice. Eventually, the app showed the driver was out for delivery, ETA shown on app. When the app reached the ETA, the order was cancelled without explanation. This was over an hour after the order was placed.

          We are sorry to hear about your experience. Uber values the feedback and suggestions of its partners, and we are always striving to better the partner experience.
          We appreciate you taking the time to write into us. We have processes in place to review this type of feedback so that it can help improve and enhance the overall Uber Eats experience.

          Thanks for the offer to send feedback into a black hole that you'll never address or respond to.
          However, you still need to appropriately respond to the issue at hand. Please provide a proper offer of compensation for your error, or escalate this to someone who can.

          We understand this has been frustrating and are sorry to hear this has been such a poor experience for you.
          We've taken another look into this and unfortunately, we are unable to offer a price adjustment or compensation for this order.
          *We understand how disappointing it is and we appreciate your feedback as we continue to make improvements to our app. We would also encourage you to share your experience directly with the delivery partner by rating them in the app. This helps the delivery partners improve their services to you and to make sure that we maintain in meeting the expectations of valued customers like you.
          Thank you for your understanding and we hope to offer you a better experience on your next order.

          You absolutely are able to offer something better. Please escalate this if you are unwilling.

          It seems like your delivery partner had some trouble getting to you and was unable to complete this delivery. This is not the kind of experience we want you to have on Uber Eats and we understand how frustrating this must be. However, rest assured that you have not been charged for this order. We will also add $5.99 of delivery fee credit on your account. It'll be used automatically in your next order unless you turn it off.

          I think you should do better. A delivery credit, for which you often have codes for (and which I already had) is an insult.

          You should recognise this as a failure and respond appropriately, given that the handling of this whole matter is extremely poor.

          • You made me wait for an hour, with no indication that the order was not going to be delivered.
          • You cancelled the order with no explanation or apology at the last possible moment, leaving me with no options due to the lateness.
          • You still haven't explained what the problem
          • You have fobbed me off multiple times with cut-and-paste emails and excuses
          • You have only offered a free delivery coupon of less value than a previous free delivery coupon which I already had.

          Please make a better offer. For example, you could credit me the cost of the order which you failed to deliver.

          Sorry to hear about your experience. Uber values feedback and suggestions from customers, and we are always striving to have better experience. We appreciate you taking the time to write in to us. We have processes in place to review this type of feedback so that it can help improve and enhance the overall Uber Eats experience.

          Don't send me any more form emails. Read and respond properly like any decent company would:
          I think you should be making me an offer of compensation.
          It doesn't matter that you didn't charge me for the order.
          I made the order in good faith, you accepted my order and then failed to complete the order. If you had cancelled the order straight away, then I would be more understanding, but making me wait an hour before cancelling it at the last second is completely unacceptable.
          Your business relies on the essence of time. You wasted my time. Please make it good.

          It looks like the delivery partner had trouble and was forced to cancel the delivery of the order.
          We understand that this experience may not be ideal, but rest assured that you have not been charged for this cancelled order.

          (At this point I just re-sent my previous reply to them again)

          This is xxx from the Escalated Support Team here at Uber. I understand that there was a back and forth here that led to the delay in resolving your concern. I'm sorry to hear about what happened. I have taken over this thread and will be handling this from now.
          I have added a credit of $56.45, equal to the value of the cancelled order, for use on future Uber Eats orders or Uber trips within Australia. The credit will apply to your next order or trip unless you toggle credits off when selecting your preferred payment method during checkout.

          • SirCH on 28/04/2022 - 14:35

            @jorf: I can't find the story right now, but the main takeaway point of an article I read was "Uber has customer management, not customer support"

          • muzzamo on 28/04/2022 - 15:44

            @jorf: interesting. I wonder if you could just keep replying with "escalated support team" until you get to someone that isn't form replies / AI.

            • jorf on 29/04/2022 - 08:11

              @muzzamo: Probably, but I think you have a better chance if you've shown that you tried to be reasonable and that they're the ones who are wrong. If they hadn't paid me out, I would have kept wasting their time until I felt that it would have cost them less to just help me out.

    • exp1 on 27/04/2022 - 22:17
      +3

      100% - I think people misunderstand the reason why food delivery exists. it is NOT about cost/value of food - it about solving for hunger ASAP when you don’t want to cook.

      when customers are hungry and tired - impulsiveness and willingness to pay is elevated (increasing beyond the 30% spoken about here).

      ^edge cases exist but based on my experience online delivery can generally deliver within reasonable time frames

      • Aneurism on 28/04/2022 - 12:56
        +1

        My view is its about convenience mostly aside from cost

  • pogichinoy on 27/04/2022 - 16:36
    -4

    Price is fair for the convenience of ordering via an app.

    If you don't like it, vote with your wallet. Simple as that.

  • Brianqpr on 27/04/2022 - 17:26

    Mostly, I call direct and go pick up. Both faster and cheaper.

  • solidussnake on 27/04/2022 - 18:52

    If I'm paying a premium I expect it hot, most times I see a driver go in the opposite direction for 10 mins then deliver mine 20mins after.. then have to nuke it as it's stone cold, so usually never bother now unless Deliveroo gives me free credit. I just go and pick it up and that way the business gets more profit

  • kaleidoscope on 27/04/2022 - 22:55
    +2

    My personal experience was that it averages 20% ~ 30% higher than ordering by phone.

    Yap

    Sometimes the promotions only offset the extra charge on orders.

    Yap

    So the question is what are your thoughts on this?

    It's not good

    Would you prefer the current fee structure on these platforms?

    No

    Would you wish regular price + a higher delivery fee?

    No. The items should be normal price as you'd get when dining in or direct order + service fee (convenience of app) + delivery fee.

    Now I mostly call and pick up myself which is hell of a lot cheaper and you'd still be helping the local businesses this way :)

  • ln28909 on 28/04/2022 - 01:46

    The price you see on these services are how restaurant vote on the service value, a lot of these restaurants actually starts with the same price on their own menu then raised it every now and then if their perceived value changes i.e. they're too busy with dine in anyway so they will charge more to compensate for the fee, therefore there isn't something as regular price and there shouldn't be since each business will value this service differently

    And generally you're expected to pay for the subscription so delivery fee can be considered as 0

  • JelIyfish on 28/04/2022 - 07:12

    I avoid Uber eats. Menulog seems to be reasonable.

    I try to order direct as I hate paying more for the same thing.

    How do you guys feel when the prices direct are the same as the apps? Part of me feels that the restaurant is then the one ripping me off and pocketing the extra 30%.

  • Miss B on 28/04/2022 - 07:37

    However the restaurant feels it works for them. I believe the restaurants get charged a percentage, so it makes sense for them to add a percentage to the prices.

    I don't agree with the argument by some that delivery services charge too much, the restaurants get advertising and someone deliver the food (unless delivered by restaurant). They don't have to use the services. By the same token, I think it's reasonable for the restaurants if they choose to add the costs to the prices.

    I only really order through the apps when there are deals that make it as cheap or cheaper than pickup. I only order from places with high delivery fees if it's free delivery, but it's the restaurant's choice if they want to charge higher delivery fees.

    People get to choose if they use it and which restaurant they order from if they do.

  • whitelie on 28/04/2022 - 10:00

    I hardly ever get it delivered. Prefer to pick up myself unless I'm on nightshift.
    What I have a hard time with is paying more to use an app to order when I'm picking up because the store themselves don't have their own app. People should be encouraged to order online as it means a staff member isn't tied up on the phone or face to face. A bit like how Maccas regularly have 20% off app orders or other deals but small businesses don't have the same volume power as Maccas.

  • juzza87 on 28/04/2022 - 10:08

    What I wonder, with petrol prices increasing to $2.00/L, does that mean the drivers are out of pocket until tax time? It seems like there's very little incentive for the drivers, and if they're relying on tips that's another issue I can't get behind.

    • gromit on 28/04/2022 - 15:52
      +1

      The reality is even when prices were not insane most drivers get less than minimum hourly wages once costs are taken into account. They rely on drivers being desperate, not caring or simply not able to do the math to work out what they actually earn.

  • IpGem on 28/04/2022 - 10:24

    My brother runs a small takeaway, uber eats charges him a whopping ~30% extra. Resultant, he charges his customers the same.

  • payless69 on 28/04/2022 - 13:19
    -3

    Acuire a 2 leget cook!

    • Jason Genova on 28/04/2022 - 14:20
      -2

      english bad

      • payless69 on 28/04/2022 - 17:20

        that is why they wrote so many songs….

  • Herbse on 28/04/2022 - 13:32
    • Each item is more expensive than if you picked it up
    • Delivery fee
    • Service fee
    • Peak surcharge
    • Holiday surcharges
    • Hour to An Hour and a Half delivery times sometimes
    • Order is missing items
    • If order is lost, you get a refund but no dinner form the night
    • If order is missing something, you get a refund but missing food for the night
    • Stress and hassle of working out what to eat when something goes wrong.

    This is why I just pick up my food

    • jaffar on 29/04/2022 - 22:15

      Agree with your points. To add:

      • Trying to shove tipping culture down our throats… boo
  • Pricetaker on 28/04/2022 - 13:59

    Not too mention you also miss out on in App Deal prices in some cases - Like Hungry Jacks for example. I used Uber Eats once to test it out with a $30 first use voucher, I saved about $5 because doing pick up with the App meant better deals. Also, my use case for Uber Eats would be on the weekend if you want a few drinks in the afternoon/evening so a better model to price it cheaper would be welcome. I guess you also need lots of people using it to make that achievable. Perhaps I'll just wait for Drone service and see how that stacks.

  • gromit on 28/04/2022 - 15:34

    Will avoid the food delivery apps whenever possible (except to locate restaurant options and menu), They all do their best to screw the restaurants and overcharge with a huge cut of the order, would much prefer my money went direct to the restaurant if the option is available.

  • diddy50 on 28/04/2022 - 18:32

    Support your local business and buy directly from them. Just pick up and save.

    Only way to beat the ubers etc.

  • Zondor on 28/04/2022 - 21:24
    +1

    Shit food, shit for the drivers, shit for the resteraunt, even the company only works because of "Future valuations".

    Avoid, there simply isn't enough money involved for anyone to make good money.

  • pe arl on 28/04/2022 - 22:39

    You don't see prices that are 20-30% higher than shelf prices on the Kmart website; why should it be different on UberEats?
    I know delivery platforms take a cut of the profits, and that's fine. Just quote the real (in-store) price of the food, slap on the actual (not some made-up figure) service fee, plus the actual delivery fee.

    • plastererJazz on 29/04/2022 - 06:43

      Agree

    • gromit on 29/04/2022 - 10:13

      simple psychology. People would be far more reluctant to purchase if it was in their face how expensive these services really are. They can overlook each meal item being 3-5 dollars more expensive but if they saw $30 for delivery for your chinese meal they would maybe think twice.

      • plastererJazz on 29/04/2022 - 11:46

        Convenience comes with a price.

        The current price model is triple-dipping on the customer, restaurant and the driver.

        Without a voucher, I wouldn't ever consider it even once when I see the price per item is 30% higher than the actual price not to mention the delivery timeframe and the food quality.

        Personally, $30 for delivery is justifiable if the actual order cost $100 or $150 off the platform.

        • gromit on 29/04/2022 - 12:01

          $30 is extremely high, especially when the delivery person and the restaurant are getting screwed in the deal.

          • plastererJazz on 29/04/2022 - 15:15

            @gromit: Agree, walking distance pickup to any local shop might be a good choice for a weekday dinner. some special occasions might be worth the premium on top but honestly there must be one resultant not too far away with decent food and willing to offer free delivery when ordering over $XX

  • johndoh89 on 28/04/2022 - 23:46

    I find the range on them very limited for rural towns seems to be around a 2km radius.

    Two blocks closer to the centre of town and I have 43 options. Where I am, 17. Bigger chain stores still show up in my 17 despite being multiple km further away.

    If I'm looking at delivery, it's because it's either too time consuming to walk and I don't feel like driving and I don't mind paying. But basically anything in delivery range other than Maccas and the like, I can get to (and home) faster on foot than they quote for delivery.

  • haemolysis on 29/04/2022 - 00:11

    I don’t really care how much more they charge, I just wish it was more transparent.

    Markups from in store prices, delivery fee, an extra service fee (when the only service they provide is delivery)… it’s like 3 separate sources of fees at a minimum.

    And the fact that they have a subscription service which doesn’t cover the total cost of delivery is truly absurd.

  • lonewolf on 29/04/2022 - 15:07

    Lately, its not even that the prices and extra fees are going higher and higher, I am finding the actual serving sizes are smaller and smaller these days. I have had quite a few orders where when i open up the package, I am actually shocked at the size and thing they made a mistake or gave me the entree size instead of main size. For the price i paid, I realised its not even a 20-30% markup , for the serving size i am getting, Its more like a 50-60% markup, it might just be the places i have ordered from and may try a few others.

    • OrderedChaos on 30/04/2022 - 09:47

      Also noted that markups are higher on lower priced items. So 30% on the main, but 40 to 45% on the sides, drinks and such.

  • drprox on 29/04/2022 - 16:42

    As someone who made the move metro to regional (no ubereats) I can say.. holy heck is it cheaper to just go collect!

  • catbug on 29/04/2022 - 16:43

    I’ve gotten into the habit of ordering directly from the restaurant and paying on pickup, or choosing local options to avoid the apps! Plus with all this inflation talk I’m more reluctant to spend money on takeaway - especially if it’s just junk I know I can get something good close by so it’s not worth it for me. My last orders are from last year! So yeah, not using the apps anymore.

  • ribze1 on 29/04/2022 - 20:02

    I only use these apps when they have decent coupons, otherwise not worth it.

  • Aerith-Waifu on 29/04/2022 - 23:10

    I recently started doing ubereats and I can tell you the amount of lazy buggers out there is unbelievable. I had delivery within walking distance 6 times this week. I am talking less than 300m in walking distance. One guys house is right opposite the restaurant and I just walked there and didn't even take the car. He probably paid $8 delivery fee and I get $4.94

    Its a total waste of resources and petrol. People should just order at the restaurant and pick up themselves for much cheaper.

    I earned $1000 working 6 days on average of around 5 hours a day due to promotions. Or about $33 an hour. If without promotions I estimate around $25 an hour not including petrol.

    • capslock on 01/05/2022 - 11:49

      Those 'lazy buggers' might have used a promo code which made it cheaper to order from uber. Uber investors and full paying customers would have ended up subsidising the orders of those 'lazy buggers'.

    • cupcake on 03/05/2022 - 10:42

      I've done this once. It was 42 degrees and I didn't want to walk 200m down the road to collect my food. When it arrived, I gave the guy a cold bottle of water!

  • OrderedChaos on 30/04/2022 - 09:44
    +1

    To answer OP's question -
    The actual prices, seperate service and delivery fees. Sheeple (😏) get duped into the "Free Delivery" sleight of hand. Doordash loves manipulating the Service Fee and Delivery. One goes up, the other down. Let's have consistency and clarity and we can all make informed decisions. This behaviour is much like our Electricity resellers 😬. Shouldn't be acceptable.

  • HappyXD on 11/05/2022 - 14:18

    Do you guys agree that restaurants should pass on most if not all of the 30% charged to them by the delivery companies to us? (uber eats, deliveroo etc.)

    • Ramrunner on 12/05/2022 - 08:13

      Well I don't want to pay more for my food (I don't use delivery services) in restaurant or drive through because I need to subsidise the money restaurants lose through delivery companies,

      So in MY eyes, yes, anyone using a delivery company should simply pay more for the privilege/convenience/laziness call it what you will.

  • Dr Techno on 17/05/2022 - 13:46

    just ordered Maccas from Menulog.. Son is isolating at home and I'm WFH but with no car today… so wanted to get something quick but not a big fan of cold food. Maccas is 3 mins drive away.. seems like food was ready 35 mins before it got to me.. and was cold.. was thinking since Maccas is only a few blocks away it would be okay but nope..

  • AustriaBargain on 01/06/2022 - 10:07

    Don't forget you can save 40 cents on your Uber Eats orders through Shopback.

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