Latest news with #DoorDashInc
Globe and Mail
09-06-2025
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Competition Bureau sues DoorDash, alleging misleading price promotions
The Competition Bureau is taking legal action against DoorDash Inc. DASH-Q and its Canadian subsidiary, alleging the company promotes their online delivery services at a lower price than what consumers actually have to pay. The bureau said Monday that it had launched an investigation, finding that consumers could not purchase food and other items at the advertised price on DoorDash websites and apps owing to additional mandatory fees at checkout. This practice is what the bureau refers to as drip pricing and 'is deceptive because consumers are not presented with an attainable price upfront,' it said in a news release. The bureau alleges that certain fees presented on DoorDash platforms appear to be taxes, but are instead charges imposed at the company's discretion. The bureau filed its application against DoorDash with the Competition Tribunal, calling for the company to pay a penalty, end deceptive price and discount advertising, stop portraying fees as taxes, and issue a restitution to affected consumers who purchased items through DoorDash's platform. Trent Hodson, communications lead for DoorDash Canada, told The Globe and Mail in an e-mailed statement that transparency is a 'top priority' for the company and denied the allegations of misleading customers. The bureau's statement notes that DoorDash charges consumers numerous mandatory fees to deliver orders made online, including service fees, delivery fees, expanded range fees, small order fees and regulatory response fees. Opinion: Canada needs a wartime competition policy DoorDash has engaged in the alleged conduct of drip pricing for close to a decade, acquiring nearly $1-billion in mandatory fees from customers, according to the bureau. In one case, the bureau said, a customer in Quebec tried to order an item from a sushi shop through DoorDash that was originally advertised as $6.25, but could not purchase the item without paying the obligatory fees, including a $1.99 delivery fee and service fee ranging from $1.99 to $3.99. These charges appear to be in addition to tax fees. Throughout the order process, these types of fees are often hidden or are not in close proximity to the initially stated prices. The bureau uses this example to establish their argument that DoorDash omits or hides obligatory fees from the price representation until checkout, rendering the advertised price of $6.25 unattainable. 'The Competition Bureau has been fighting against this misleading practice for years,' Commissioner Matthew Boswell said in the release. 'Our litigation against DoorDash is another example of our efforts to ensure consumers are not misled and can trust the prices they see online.' Mr. Hodson of DoorDash Canada said in his statement that 'All fees on DoorDash, which support the high-quality operations of our platform, are clearly labeled and disclosed to consumers throughout the ordering process – including a final review before payment. 'To be crystal clear, DoorDash does not hide fees from consumers or mislead them in any way. [The Competition Bureau's] application is a misguided and excessive attempt to target one of Canada's leading local commerce platforms. It unfairly singles out DoorDash, and we intend to vigorously defend ourselves against these claims.' This is not the first time the bureau has sought legal action against a company alleging misleading prices. Last September, the bureau won a deceptive marketing case against Cineplex Inc. for engaging in drip pricing by adding a mandatory $1.50 online booking fee and ordered the company to pay a financial penalty of more than $38.9-million. Last June, the bureau reached an agreement with SiriusXM Canada to address concerns over a mandatory additional fee on subscription plans that increased the monthly cost by 10 to 20 per cent. Currently, the bureau is pursuing legal action against Canada's Wonderland for alleged false or misleading price claims.
National Post
09-06-2025
- Business
- National Post
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
CTV News
09-06-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Competition Bureau sues DoorDash, accuses firm of misleading customers with fees
A DoorDash sign is posted on the door of a Dunkin' Donuts franchise, Feb. 27, 2023, in Methuen, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File) TORONTO — Canada's competition watchdog is suing DoorDash Inc. and its Canadian subsidiary for marketing its online delivery services at a lower price than what consumers actually wind up paying. The Competition Bureau says an investigation found DoorDash customers were unable to purchase food and other items at prices advertised on DoorDash's websites and mobile apps because of mandatory fees added at checkout. The extra charges range from service and delivery fees to amounts sought for couriering things a further distance or placing smaller orders. The bureau says the charges were sometimes framed as if they were taxes and resulted in consumers paying higher prices than advertised, amounting to a deceptive practice known as drip pricing. The bureau alleges DoorDash used drip pricing for close to a decade, making nearly $1 billion from mandatory fees paid by customers. It wants the company to stop the practice, cease portraying fees as taxes, pay a penalty and issue restitution to affected consumers, but DoorDash says the requests are 'misguided' because it does not hide fees from consumers or mislead them in any way. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 9, 2025. Tara Deschamps, The Canadian Press
Time of India
07-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
DoorDash is on a $5 billion buying spree after earnings beat
Play Video Pause Skip Backward Skip Forward Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration 0:00 Loaded : 0% 0:00 Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 Picture-in-Picture Fullscreen This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Text Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Caption Area Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Drop shadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Live Events In a matter of five hours, the US delivery firm DoorDash Inc. announced two multibillion-dollar acquisitions that stand to turn what is already the largest food-delivery service in the US into a formidable global player. It agreed to buy London-based delivery Deliveroo Plc for 180 pence per share, or about £2.9 billion ($3.9 billion), and it's acquiring hospitality tech company SevenRooms Inc. for $1.2 the deals, DoorDash also issued a strong orders outlook for the current quarter and posted better-than-expected gross order value for the first three months of the year in a statement on company's buying spree highlights DoorDash's ambitions outside of the US, where it already commands about two-thirds of the food-delivery market. A takeover of Deliveroo will expand its reach to more than 40 countries, DoorDash said. The two companies combined had a gross order value of about $90 billion last year and have 50 million monthly active delivery industry has been consolidating after a slowdown from pandemic-level highs, leaving room for a dominant player like DoorDash to grow even larger. Also on Tuesday, Uber Technologies Inc. said it's buying an 85% controlling stake in the Turkish delivery app Trendyol Go. In February, Prosus NV agreed to buy Amsterdam's Just Eat NV, while billionaire Marc Lore's Wonder Group Inc. closed its acquisition of Chicago-based Grubhub earlier this year.'Our focus has always been build a great product, not just for consumers, but merchants as well as dashers and couriers,' said DoorDash Chief Financial Officer Ravi Inukonda. The deals provide 'an opportunity to invest across a broader set of countries and bring our product experience that got us to number one in the US as well as number one in all these countries into the delivery geographies as well.'DoorDash shares dropped 9.8% to $185.35 at 10:10 a.m. in New York, the biggest intraday decline in a year. The stock has gained 11% this year. Deliveroo rose 2% to 175.50 pence in acquisition of SevenRooms will give it a reservation platform and customer-management tool similar to OpenTable or Resy that works with more than 13,000 restaurant groups. Its clients include Marriott International Inc., MGM Resorts International and Wolfgang 2022, DoorDash worked with SevenRooms to pilot restaurant reservations within the DoorDash app in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago. In addition to restaurant delivery, DoorDash also offers white-label services to build ordering interfaces for restaurants' websites and phone answering Executive Officer Tony Xu said DoorDash's philosophy on deals hasn't changed. 'The bar continues to remain high for M&A,' he said in a call with analysts on Tuesday. 'Sometimes, the timing of some of these announcements aren't or can't be perfectly forecasted. But what I would say is it really is business as usual.'The Deliveroo deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2025 while the all-cash SevenRooms purchase is expected to close in the second half of this year. Both transactions will require regulatory approvals, and in the case of Deliveroo, at least 75% of the company's shareholders will need to give their blessing. So far, investors representing 15.4% of Deliveroo's stock have agreed to sell their shares, including Chief Executive Officer Will acquisitions of Deliveroo and SevenRooms suggest the company is focused on boosting user growth in the UK and layering AI capabilities for its fragmented merchant base. Though delivery margins will likely remain lower for Deliveroo vs. DoorDash's existing markets, we believe the latter's technology and customer-relationship management capabilities could spur merchant supply growth and help it gain share in the splintered UK online delivery market.— Mandeep Singh, BI senior industry analystTo facilitate the Deliveroo deal, DoorDash is taking a $2.85 billion bridge loan from JPMorgan . It had about $4.5 billion in cash and cash equivalents at the end of the last quarter, according to earnings results that the company also issued the current period, DoorDash sees gross order value of $23.3 billion to $23.7 billion, it said in the statement, surpassing Wall Street projections. The company said the results show consumer demand 'remained strong' and that engagement has been 'consistent' across different cohorts so far this order value and the number of orders for the first quarter surpassed expectations, reaching record quarterly highs. DoorDash credited the beat to its continued push into non-restaurant deliveries. Specifically, it cited 'strong signs of increasing consumer trust' in the grocery category, with 'accelerating average spend per grocery consumer and increasing average spend on perishables' in the revenue for the quarter was $3 billion, just missing the average analyst estimate, while net income came in at $193 million, ahead of the investments to enter new categories and international markets, however, weighed on DoorDash's earnings forecast. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization will be $600 million to $650 million, with the midpoint missing the average estimate of $637.7 million.
The Star
06-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
U.S. DoorDash on 5 bln USD buying spree after earnings beat
NEW YORK, May 6 (Xinhua) -- In a matter of five hours on Tuesday, the U.S. delivery firm DoorDash Inc. announced two multibillion-dollar acquisitions that stand to turn what is already the largest food-delivery service in the United States into a formidable global player. It agreed to buy London-based delivery Deliveroo Plc for 180 pence per share, or about 3.9 billion U.S. dollars, and it's acquiring hospitality tech company SevenRooms Inc. for 1.2 billion dollars. Alongside the deals, DoorDash also issued a strong orders outlook for the current quarter and posted better-than-expected gross order value for the first three months of the year in a statement on Tuesday. "The company's buying spree highlights DoorDash's ambitions outside of the United States, where it already commands about two-thirds of the food-delivery market," reported Bloomberg News about the move. A takeover of Deliveroo will expand its reach to more than 40 countries. The two companies combined had a gross order value of about 90 billion dollars last year and have 50 million monthly active users. The delivery industry has been consolidating after a slowdown from pandemic-level highs, leaving room for a dominant player like DoorDash to grow even larger, it added.
