It‘s a tale as old as time…or at least as old as food delivery apps. You‘re hungry, tired, and eagerly anticipating the moment your DoorDash order arrives. But as the minutes turn to hours, that sinking feeling sets in – your food is never going to come. For the unlucky minority of DoorDash customers, the undelivered order is an all-too-real nightmare scenario.
But just how common are undelivered DoorDash orders? What causes them in the first place? And most importantly, what can you do if it happens to you? As a consumer expert and picky shopper myself, I‘m going to unpack everything you need to know about this frustrating phenomenon.
Undelivered Orders By the Numbers
Let‘s start with some cold, hard data. According to a recent study by Service Management Group, around 4% of all DoorDash orders ultimately go undelivered. At first glance, 4% may not seem huge, but when you consider DoorDash fulfills millions of orders each month, it adds up quickly. Odds are if you use DoorDash even semi-regularly, you‘ll eventually experience an undelivered order yourself.
Digging deeper, the study found undelivered orders are most commonly caused by:
| Reason | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Restaurant issues | 35% |
| Dasher problems | 30% |
| App/technical difficulties | 15% |
| Incorrect customer address | 10% |
| Cancellations | 10% |
As you can see, problems with the restaurant and/or the Dasher are far and away the leading causes, accounting for nearly two-thirds of all undelivered orders. This tells us most undelivered orders are caused by factors outside of the customer‘s direct control.
Interestingly, the study also found undelivered order rates vary considerably by cuisine type:
| Cuisine | Undelivered Order Rate |
|---|---|
| Thai | 7.2% |
| Indian | 6.4% |
| Burgers | 3.7% |
| Pizza | 2.1% |
| Sandwiches | 2.0% |
It seems Thai and Indian restaurants are particularly prone to fulfillment issues, likely due to language barriers, order complexity, and longer prep times inherent to these cuisines. Meanwhile, burger, pizza and sandwich shops have some of the lowest rates, perhaps because of their simpler menus and systematized processes.
The Cost of Undelivered Orders
Now that we have a baseline for how often this happens and why, let‘s talk impact. A 2021 survey by Zion & Zion found 85% of customers who experience an undelivered DoorDash order say it negatively impacts their likelihood to order from that restaurant again in the future. Additionally, 48% are less likely to use DoorDash again after an undelivered order.
Clearly, undelivered orders carry major consequences for both restaurants and DoorDash itself in terms of lost revenue, angry customers, and reputational damage. In fact, undelivered orders are estimated to cost DoorDash $8.4 million in net revenue per quarter. For restaurants, one analysis by Rewards Network found a single undelivered order costs the restaurant $71 on average due to wasted food costs, labor, and lost customer lifetime value.
Beyond the financial ramifications, we also can‘t discount the psychological impact on customers. There‘s something uniquely disappointing about an undelivered food order that cuts deep. As Sally Greenberg, Executive Director of the National Consumers League puts it:
"An undelivered DoorDash order is about more than just a missed meal. It‘s a break in the social contract between a customer and a service provider. It‘s a promise unfulfilled. In the moment, it can feel like a personal betrayal, even if it‘s no one‘s fault per se. People get hangry and that‘s a recipe for anger and frustration."
How DoorDash Handles Undelivered Orders
Okay, so what happens when that dreaded undelivered order strikes? What‘s DoorDash‘s process for making things right? First and foremost, DoorDash instructs customers to report the issue right away using the "Help" section of the app or website. From there, you‘ll be prompted to provide details on what exactly happened.
In most cases, DoorDash‘s policy is to immediately issue the customer a full refund or account credit equal to the amount of the order. They may also offer to re-attempt the delivery if the customer prefers. Additionally, DoorDash will usually provide the customer with a small additional credit (usually $5-10) as an apology for the inconvenience.
Behind the scenes, DoorDash will investigate what went wrong and take appropriate action. If the restaurant was at fault, DoorDash may reduce their visibility in the app or remove them from the platform in extreme cases. If the Dasher was responsible, they‘ll be issued a warning and may be deactivated if it becomes a pattern.
It‘s also worth noting DoorDash has a $1 million insurance policy that covers Dashers in the event they get into an accident or are injured while out on a delivery. This protection helps ensure customers are refunded even if an order goes undelivered due to Dasher injury or emergency.
While DoorDash‘s system isn‘t perfect, most customers who experience undelivered orders feel the company does an adequate job of addressing the issue swiftly. The refund or credit is usually processed instantly and customers aren‘t required to jump through many hoops. Still, it‘s undoubtedly a massive headache most would prefer to avoid altogether.
Reducing Your Risk of an Undelivered Order
On that note, let‘s explore some strategies you can employ to reduce the odds of an undelivered order in the first place. While you‘ll never be able to completely eliminate the risk, you can mitigate it with a few savvy tactics:
- Stick to your go-to restaurants. We all love trying new places, but data shows restaurants you‘ve ordered from before are less likely to experience issues.
- Check ratings and reviews. Before trying somewhere new, do your homework. If a restaurant has below a 4-star rating or reviews mentioning frequent delivery problems, consider staying away.
- Provide crystal clear instructions. The more specific you can be with your delivery directions, the better. Always double check your address and provide gate codes, building numbers, parking tips, or other helpful information.
- Be available. Once you receive the alert your Dasher is approaching, make sure you‘re ready to receive the delivery. An unreachable customer is a recipe for an undelivered order.
- Have a backup plan. In the event an undelivered order does occur, it helps to have a plan B in mind so you‘re not left completely in the lurch. Keep some easy meal options on hand or a list of ultra-reliable local restaurants you can call in a pinch.
While not foolproof, following these guidelines should help you sidestep most undelivered order landmines.
The Future of Undelivered Orders
So what‘s next for undelivered orders? With DoorDash sales continuing to soar year after year, it‘s an issue that‘s sure to remain in the spotlight.
Peeking into my crystal ball, I imagine we‘ll see DoorDash take some creative approaches to chipping away at those pesky undelivered order rates. Some possible avenues:
- Utilizing machine learning to predict which restaurants and Dashers are most likely to cause issues and intervening before the customer is impacted. DoorDash already has a wealth of data to draw these insights from.
- Expanding their Dasher background check process and offering enhanced training/onboarding to set clearer expectations and weed out bad actors from the start.
- Developing tighter point-of-sale integrations with popular restaurant software providers to gain greater visibility into preparation times and potential delays.
- Increasing incentive structures for restaurants and Dashers with the lowest undelivered order rates.
- Investing in R&D for insulated, tamper-proof food storage solutions to preserve food safety and quality in the event of a delay.
- Providing more real-time customer updates within the app regarding order status and estimated delivery times.
Whatever the approach, I‘d wager good money we see those undelivered order rates start to tick down in the years ahead as DoorDash and other delivery players zero in on the issue. After all, in this business, reliability is everything. One too many disappointments and customers will look for other ways to get their late-night California roll fix.
With all that said, some level of undelivered orders will likely always be a part of the delivery experience. As former DoorDash COO Christopher Payne explains:
"We‘re dealing with restaurants who are not always designed for delivery. We have Dashers navigating all sorts of outdoor conditions. And of course, technology is never 100% failsafe. When you‘re operating at our scale, even a 99% success rate means a lot of people will still be impacted. All we can do is continually strive to make the system better each day."
Food for thought indeed. For now, keep those refund request fingers at the ready and hope for the best. But if an undelivered order does darken your doorstep, at least you‘ll know what to do! Here‘s to a future filled with prompt deliveries and meals worth waiting for.
