Competition Bureau sues DoorDash for allegedly misleading customers over fees
Canada's competition watchdog is suing DoorDash Inc. and its Canadian subsidiary, accusing it of marketing its online delivery services at a lower price than what consumers actually wind up paying.
Article content
The Competition Bureau alleged Monday that an investigation found DoorDash customers were unable to purchase food and other items at prices advertised on the food delivery company's websites and mobile apps because of mandatory fees added at checkout.
Article content
Article content
Article content
The extra charges range from service and delivery fees to amounts sought for couriering things a further distance, placing smaller orders or making purchases in B.C., where DoorDash has to comply with minimum wage regulations for gig workers.
Article content
Article content
The bureau alleged the charges were sometimes framed as if they were taxes, when in reality, they are charges imposed at DoorDash's discretion.
Article content
The fees resulted in customers paying higher prices than advertised and amounted to a deceptive practice known as drip pricing, which the bureau alleges DoorDash may have used for close to a decade to make nearly from $1 billion from mandatory fees.
Article content
The bureau wants the company to stop the practice, cease portraying fees as taxes, pay a penalty and issue restitution to affected consumers.
Article content
DoorDash is pushing back on the requests, saying 'it does not hide fees from consumers or mislead them in any way.'
Article content
'This application is a misguided and excessive attempt to target one of Canada's leading local commerce platforms,' DoorDash spokesperson Trent Hodson said in a statement to The Canadian Press.
Article content
Article content
'It unfairly singles out DoorDash, and we intend to vigorously defend ourselves against these claims.'
Article content
The Competition Bureau has been more aggressive in its fight against drip pricing since the Competition Act was amended in June 2022 to more clearly distinguish the practice as harmful, giving regulators more room to pursue companies who engage in such activity.
Article content
The bureau accused Cineplex Inc. of drip pricing in May 2023, eventually winning a $38.9-million fine against the movie theatre giant, which is contesting the decision from the Competition Tribunal.
Article content
Other recent Competition Bureau targets for drip pricing have included SiriusXM Canada, Discount Car & Truck Rentals Ltd. and TicketNetwork.
Article content
Its Door Dash court filing shows it is going after the business for making 'false or misleading representations' because 'when consumers go online to order, they expect these services to deliver not just food, but also honest pricing.'
Article content
'Consumers expect that the price they see advertised will match what they ultimately pay,' the bureau's application said.
Article content
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CTV News
39 minutes ago
- CTV News
CTV QP: ‘We need to fight for every job in the steel sector': Minister Joly
Watch Industry Minister Melanie Joly on the comments about the recently announced countermeasures falling short against U.S. steel tariffs.
Vancouver Sun
an hour ago
- Vancouver Sun
Security and defence high on the agenda as Mark Carney attends EU and NATO summits
Prime Minister Mark Carney departed for Europe on Sunday for back-to-back summits where he is expected to make major commitments for Canada on security and defence. Carney will be joined by Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand, Defence Minister David McGuinty and secretary of state for defence procurement Stephen Fuhr at the EU and NATO summits, where military procurement and diversifying supply chains will top the agendas. The international meetings come as Canada looks to reduce its defence procurement reliance on the United States due to strained relations over tariffs and President Donald Trump's repeated talk about Canada becoming a U.S. state. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Carney will fly first to Brussels, Belgium, starting the trip with a visit to the Antwerp Schoonselhof Military Cemetery where 348 Canadian soldiers are buried. He will also meet with Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever, European Council President Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. At the EU-Canada summit, Anand and McGuinty are expected to sign a security and defence agreement with the EU in what one European official described Friday as one of the most ambitious deals Europe has ever signed with a third country. The agreement will open the door to Canada's participation in the ReArm Europe initiative, allowing Canada to access a 150-billion-euro loan program for defence procurement, called Security Action for Europe. An EU official briefing reporters on Friday said once the procurement deal is in place, Canada will have to negotiate a bilateral agreement with the European Commission to begin discussions with member states about procurement opportunities. A Canadian official briefing reporters on the summit Saturday said the initial agreement will allow for Canada's participation in some joint procurement projects. However, a second agreement will be needed to allow Canadian companies to bid. At the EU-Canada summit, leaders are also expected to issue a joint statement to underscore a willingness for continued pressure on Russia, including through further sanctions, and call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza. After Brussels, Carney heads to The Hague in the Netherlands for the NATO leaders' summit on Tuesday and Wednesday. There, Carney will meet with the King of the Netherlands and later with leaders of Nordic nations to discuss Arctic and transatlantic security. At the NATO summit, Carney will take part in bilateral meetings with other leaders. The summit agenda includes a social dinner hosted by the king and queen of the Netherlands and a two-and-a-half-hour meeting of the North Atlantic Council. NATO allies are expected to debate a plan to hike alliance members' defence spending target to five per cent of national GDP. NATO data shows that in 2024, none of its 32 members spent that much. The Canadian government official who briefed reporters on background says the spending target and its timeline are still up for discussion, though some allies have indicated they would prefer a seven-year timeline while others favour a decade. Canada hasn't hit a five-per-cent defence spending threshold since the 1950s and hasn't reached the two per cent mark since the late 1980s. NATO says that, based on its estimate of which expenditures count toward the target, Canada spent $41 billion in 2024 on defence, or 1.37 per cent of GDP. That's more than twice what it spent in 2014, when the two per cent target was first set; that year, Canada spent $20.1 billion, or 1.01 per cent of GDP, on defence. In 2014, only three NATO members achieved the two per cent target — the U.S., the U.K., and Greece. In 2025, all members are expected to hit it. Any agreement to adopt a new spending benchmark must be ratified by all 32 NATO member states. Former Canadian ambassador to NATO Kerry Buck told The Canadian Press the condensed agenda is likely meant to 'avoid public rifts among allies,' describing Trump as an 'uncertainty engine.' 'The national security environment has really, really shifted,' Buck said, adding allies next door to Russia face the greatest threats. 'There is a high risk that the U.S. would undercut NATO at a time where all allies are increasingly vulnerable.' Trump has suggested the U.S. might abandon its mutual defence commitment to the alliance if member countries don't ramp up defence spending. 'Whatever we can do to get through this NATO summit with few public rifts between the U.S. and other allies on anything, and satisfy a very long-standing U.S. demand to rebalance defence spending, that will be good for Canada because NATO's good for Canada,' Buck said. Carney has already made two trips to Europe this year — the first to London and Paris to meet with European allies and the second to Rome to attend the inaugural mass of Pope Leo XIV. Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here .
National Post
an hour ago
- National Post
Security and defence high on the agenda as Mark Carney attends EU and NATO summits
Article content At the NATO summit, Carney will take part in bilateral meetings with other leaders. The summit agenda includes a social dinner hosted by the king and queen of the Netherlands and a two-and-a-half-hour meeting of the North Atlantic Council. Article content NATO allies are expected to debate a plan to hike alliance members' defence spending target to five per cent of national GDP. NATO data shows that in 2024, none of its 32 members spent that much. Article content The Canadian government official who briefed reporters on background says the spending target and its timeline are still up for discussion, though some allies have indicated they would prefer a seven-year timeline while others favour a decade. Article content Canada hasn't hit a five-per-cent defence spending threshold since the 1950s and hasn't reached the two per cent mark since the late 1980s. Article content NATO says that, based on its estimate of which expenditures count toward the target, Canada spent $41 billion in 2024 on defence, or 1.37 per cent of GDP. That's more than twice what it spent in 2014, when the two per cent target was first set; that year, Canada spent $20.1 billion, or 1.01 per cent of GDP, on defence. Article content Article content In 2014, only three NATO members achieved the two per cent target — the U.S., the U.K., and Greece. In 2025, all members are expected to hit it. Article content Any agreement to adopt a new spending benchmark must be ratified by all 32 NATO member states. Article content Former Canadian ambassador to NATO Kerry Buck told The Canadian Press the condensed agenda is likely meant to 'avoid public rifts among allies,' describing Trump as an 'uncertainty engine.' Article content 'The national security environment has really, really shifted,' Buck said, adding allies next door to Russia face the greatest threats. 'There is a high risk that the U.S. would undercut NATO at a time where all allies are increasingly vulnerable.' Article content Trump has suggested the U.S. might abandon its mutual defence commitment to the alliance if member countries don't ramp up defence spending. Article content 'Whatever we can do to get through this NATO summit with few public rifts between the U.S. and other allies on anything, and satisfy a very long-standing U.S. demand to rebalance defence spending, that will be good for Canada because NATO's good for Canada,' Buck said. Article content Carney has already made two trips to Europe this year — the first to London and Paris to meet with European allies and the second to Rome to attend the inaugural mass of Pope Leo XIV. Article content
