About 95 million people use Uber Eats, Business of Apps reported. This incredibly popular food delivery app is convenient and simple, which is why it has been so widely embraced.
Unfortunately, challenges with its business model have frustrated customers and delivery drivers alike. States have moved to regulate Uber Eats and address some of these issues, and litigation has also addressed various aspects of the delivery service’s model.
Now, a federal judge has recently issued a ruling on one major Uber Eats problem, and it could affect the price of orders — at least in one area to start, and potentially soon, nationwide.
Here’s what the court said, along with details on how it could affect customers ordering from Uber Eats.
Uber Eats
Court weighs in on Uber Eats rule that could affect order pricing
The Uber Eats decision by the federal judge will primarily impact people in New York City — for now. However, it could have ripple effects nationwide that change the order process and final price of food delivery services everywhere in the United States.
The court’s decision had to do with a new law in New York City regulating the way Uber Eats drivers are tipped. Specifically, New York City law now requires that:
- App users ordering food must now be given the option to tip their driver at checkout. Currently, the option to tip is offered after placing an order.
- The app defaults the amount of the tip to at least 10%.
The law is part of the city’s efforts to improve working conditions for delivery drivers, as city regulators accused both Uber and DoorDash of costing delivery workers more than $550 million by altering the interface of their apps to discourage customers from leaving their drivers a tip.
Uber Eats fails to stop the new tipping rule from going into effect
Uber Eats and DoorDash filed a joint lawsuit to try to undo the tipping rule. The companies argued that New York City was violating their constitutional free speech rights by requiring “a government-mandated message in a prescribed manner and at a prescribed time.”
The U.S. District Court Judge presiding over the case did not agree with these arguments, though, and said the law can go into effect.
Uber Eats and DoorDash plan to continue fighting the rule. “We’re disappointed in this ruling, but are confident in our position and will continue working to prevent further losses for local businesses and higher costs for consumers,” a DoorDash spokesperson said.
How the court ruling will impact the price of your Uber Eats order
The change to the tipping rules could affect your order price because the default is now 10%. While you can change that, many people may not notice or pay careful attention and could put their order through with the default tip in place without realizing it.
Including the tip in the pre-order screen, instead of providing the option to tip only after you order, could also make the total upfront costs of the purchase much clearer.
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You can see before you place the order what your all-in expenses will be, rather than getting all the way through the order and having to decide whether, or how much, to tip at that point.
The financial impact remains to be seen. It’s also unclear whether similar laws will be passed nationwide if this one succeeds in its goal of protecting drivers.
Advocacy groups clearly believe this means more money for drivers. “These victories matter because they reaffirm a simple truth: Delivery workers are not disposable, and app companies do not get to rewrite labor standards through app design and legal intimidation.”
Of course, if you are ordering Uber Eats, you (hopefully) are tipping delivery drivers anyway, so this should just make you more aware of where your money is going.
The Uber Eats change will help you make better up-front choices about whether the total cost of the delivery (including a fair tip) is really within your budget.
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