Hard to swallow: the 30% price hike that gets delivered with your meal

theguardian.com:

The pandemic was a boom time for food delivery as Britons relied on apps such as Deliveroo to get dishes brought to their door. But that convenience comes at a price, as consumers are often being charged higher prices – in some cases almost a third more – on takeaway menus as well as service and delivery fees.

Using apps such as Deliveroo, Uber Eats and Just Eat will often cost more than if you were ordering the same food in a restaurant or cafe, because restaurateurs say they need to make up for the fees levied by the apps, which are frequently around 30% of the price of the order.

In one case, a fish and chip takeaway in St Andrews charges £11.20 for haddock, chips and lemon if the customer orders in the shop, but £14.40 if they go through Deliveroo.

Wendy Napthine Frame, owner of Cromars, says this is to make up for a 29% fee the delivery service charges.

Deepak Shukla, who owns three cafes in south London, charges £3.90 for a cappuccino on Deliveroo and Uber Eats, but £3.10 if a customer comes through the door. A toasted sandwich is £6.50 on the apps and £4.90 in store. That means a lunch is 30% more to order from home.

“We inflate prices to support the fact that Deliveroo take a commission,” he says. “Otherwise, you’d make a loss after paying staff, as well as bagging and tagging.”

The use of delivery apps rose sharply during lockdown as restaurants, pubs and cafes were restricted from serving diners in person on their premises. In the first half of last year, Deliveroo doubled its customer orders compared with 2020. Just Eat saw similar rises across Europe.

Customers typically pay a delivery fee and a service fee; the service fee is a percentage of the order before discounts are applied. Uber Eats charges 10% with a