The delivery service finds a new way to make B.C. suffer
The B.C. Liberals and B.C. NDP both made campaign promises during the 2020 election to install delivery cap fees for food delivery companies like SkipTheDishes and DoorDash throughout the province. In December of this past year, the B.C. government put into action a 15 per cent cap for these food delivery companies. The cap is temporary and will discontinue three months after B.C. has lifted their state of emergency. By having this cap in place, local restaurants will be able to make a solid profit for their services while allowing the delivery service to get a fair slice of the earnings. Before this cap was introduced, SkipTheDishes was able to take up to 30 per cent of an order total through the app, a major damage to the already suffering restaurant industry.
In response to the cap, SkipTheDishes has added a $0.99 fee to all orders in B.C. Therefore, since Skip cannot gouge restaurants for extra cash, they’re passing the burden on to their customers. A tweet called this move “tone deaf,” which seems to explain precisely how this action feels to us in B.C. With restaurants closing all across the province due to COVID-19, many people in the food industry are out of work. Of course, they’re not the only ones out of work. B.C. is facing another month of rising unemployment rates. With all this in place, SkipTheDishes really is tone deaf in demanding another fee on their (often already expensive) charges.
Living in Chilliwack, food delivery fees can often be upward of $6, which on its own is a massive price tag. Add on the $0.99 B.C. fee, driver tip, and taxes, and a dinner for two could easily be upward of $60 just for take-out.
During this time, it’s very important to support local restaurants, but at what cost? The price tag of an extra $0.99 may seem very little, but when it all adds up, the total can be exorbitant. With that in mind, it’s hard to imagine a massively successful company like SkipTheDishes needing the extra charge. Their advertisements are all over cable, along the ice rink for NHL games, and plentiful throughout Instagram. They’ve even produced numerous ads featuring Jon Hamm, some of which landed during the Super Bowl, which is certainly no small feat. With all of that we can see that the extra fee is probably just going toward their pricey advertisements — something not essential in any way.
With all this said, it’s time to boycott SkipTheDishes. This greedy company does not deserve our business anymore. If you require delivery, look into other companies that offer their services. Many local restaurants also offer nearby delivery themselves. If they don’t, just call them directly and order for pickup if you can. By doing this, every single dollar you spend on your food will go directly to the restaurant, not a multinational company.
