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DoorDash is excellent when it works, but sometimes it doesn't. For example, you might find yourself in a predicament where you have placed an order through DoorDash, but no Dasher has been assigned to deliver it. Your pregnant wife has cravings, the kids are chewing the furniture, and you all feel angry.
What can you do if you are in this sad and hangry state?
If no Dasher has been assigned to your DoorDash order, you can either wait a bit longer or fetch your order. Alternatively, you can increase the tip incentive on the order through the DoorDash App or customer service or cancel your order and get a full or partial refund.
DoorDash Dashers are independent contractors. This means they are not employed full-time as delivery staff, and they can choose which orders they wish to accept and deliver. If there are few Dashers in your area, you can expect a delay in delivery, or worse yet – no Dasher assigned at all. In this instance, you can try the options discussed below.
Option 1: Wait A Little Longer
No one likes waiting too long for their food delivery, but you might live in an area with only a few Dashers. Some Dashers avoid delivering to specific locations because of the distance or for safety reasons. Also, if you live in a security complex or military base, you might find Dashers could not be bothered to waste their time going through security checks.
If you are impatient to wait and see if a Dasher eventually selects your order, you can try the following options to resolve the problem.
Option 2: Increase Your Tip
DoorDash gives Dashers a delivery fee, but it's not an earth-shattering amount. Dashers are more likely to select your order if you have included a nice tip that makes it worthwhile. Remember, it is their time and gas they are spending. Some recommend offering at least $4 as a Dasher tip to increase the chances of speedier delivery.
If you didn't add a tip initially, or your tip was on the low side, you can increase the Dasher incentive in one of two ways:
- Contact DoorDash customer service and place a claim on your order. In this claim, you can adjust or increase your tip.
- Cancel your order altogether through the DoorDash App or customer service. Then reorder, but with the increased tip amount.
Option 3: Cancel Your Order
If you wait too long for a non-existent Dasher, your order might be too cold, or you might perish from starvation. To avoid either of these situations, you could cancel your order if DoorDash doesn't do so automatically. Then, depending on the refund policy and the restaurant, you could get a full or partial refund or credit from DoorDash.
Suppose you have resorted to canceling your order. You could try ordering through DoorDash again with a higher tip or placing a direct order at the restaurant and fetching it yourself. Either way, it would be good to contact DoorDash's customer service as they could provide some insight into the problem.
Option 4: Fetch The Order Yourself
If you cannot wait any longer to receive your order or wait for a Dasher to be assigned, you can fetch your order yourself. If you pick up your DoorDash order, you can notify DoorDash through their App or Customer Service and get the delivery fee credited.
Conclusion
DoorDash is designed to be a convenient way of outsourcing independent contractors – Dashers – to deliver takeaway orders. Unfortunately, it is not guaranteed that a Dasher will be assigned to your DoorDash order. In fact, other frustrating errors can also come up, such as the bad gateway error (or 502), or DoorDash stuck on “preparing order”. In this case, you can wait longer, increase your tip as an incentive, cancel your order, or fetch your order yourself.
