New York Customers Can Now Only Tip DoorDash Drivers Via App

New York customers can now only pay tips to DoorDash drivers through the delivery service's tax-included in-app payment.

While the policy has been in place since November last year, DoorDash drivers are now mandated to block any upfront tips from customers, instead directing them to the service's app and website.

Many drivers have previously since come forward of receiving fewer tips following the changes due to the convoluted path people needed to go to add gratuity payments.

DoorDash Website Has Flaws in its Payment Option: Report

DoorDash's app version has the "Add Tip" option at the top of the original bill, while the web platform's tip box is entirely inaccessible without notifying the company's customer service.

The troublesome tipping system was first reported by The Verge.

The tipping policy is only applicable to New York City following its recent wage increase for food delivery drivers which DoorDash previously called "ill-conceived."

As of April 1, DoorDash drivers make $19.56 per hour of active time following the agreement the company has reached with the city.

DoorDash Drivers Call for Better Wages

While DoorDash is calling out against New York City's wage policy as "deeply flawed," its employees from other states are demanding the same salary increase in their places.

Delivery drivers from DoorDash, Uber, Lyft, and Grubhub have been reported to go on strike in Nashville to petition for better wages and working conditions.

The protest follows earlier strikes, like the 2024 Valentine's Day Strike, as drivers and delivery workers for better job security amid an increasingly steeper job market in the US.

In many states, delivery drivers can easily lose their jobs due to the companies' deactivation system, allowing customers to essentially fire drivers and delivery workers after filing a complaint against them, regardless of whether it is true or not.

DoorDash and other delivery franchises have since rolled out revamped policies to allow drivers to contest the complaint, although many feel that the effort is not enough.

According to its 2021 report, DoorDash has around 2 million active Dashers all across the US.