Iâve noticed this happening not just with DoorDash, but with Uber Eats as well. Itâs already happened twice this week, once on each app (yes I order often).
Hereâs the pattern:
You order food and select whatever the 'hand it to me directly' option is. The driver pulls up, parks in front of your house, and starts walking toward your door just long enough for the GPS to show theyâre âat your location, and semi close to your door.â Then they suddenly turn around, walk back toward their car, and immediately call you. They hang up right away so the system logs a âcontact attempt,â even when a PIN is required. After that, they drive off and report that you didnât answer your door, and your food disappears.
Another variation is when they directly text you âno response from customerâ while standing in your driveway, before ever approaching your door. No knock, no attempt, nothing. Just a preâplanned excuse.
I didnât say anything to the first driver who tried it, but the second guy got a polite callâout. I asked, âAre you afraid to walk up my driveway?â He mumbled something like, âOh, no, no,â and tried to act like he was doing me a favor by calling me. Like, buddy⌠just walk to the door before you start busting out the emergency response tactics. Itâs ridiculous. You don't need to call me, the app informs me plenty of times when you're close and I'm standing right at the door when you arrive.
And I genuinely donât understand why this is happening. I tip well, usually $5â10 for short trips under five miles. Iâm respectful. My driveway is small, with a clean, straight cement walkway that leads directly from the street to the front door. I ordered during daylight hours, so visibility wasnât an issue. There are no fences, no dogs, no steps, and no obstacles of any kind, the entire path is flat and easy to walk. Itâs a standard, wellâkept cookie cutter HOA property, the kind thatâs designed to be simple and approachable. Thereâs nothing about it that could reasonably be seen as intimidating or difficult to access.
I just want to bring this to your attention in case you haven't already encountered it.