While restaurants are struggling to stay open, delivery apps are piling on the harsh financial burden with high fees. In NYC, the City Council expects to pass emergency legislation today, which will cap the delivery app commission fees by 20 percent during any government-ordered state of emergency, according to the New York Post.
Third-party delivery apps, including GrubHub, Uber Eats, and Seamless, have been faced with scrutiny since the start of the pandemic because of their costly delivery fees. With this new 20 percent cap, the city hopes to relieve some of the financial burdens on restaurants.
This new emergency cap, however, is higher than the previously proposed 10 percent cap. According to the NY Post, officials said they are raising the cap to allow for delivery costs, including insuring workers.
The cap limits third-party delivery apps from charging restaurants more than 15 percent per order for delivery and ordering services. The other 5 percent restricts the apps from charging no more than 5 percent charge for all other types of charges, including marketing and credit card processing fees, according to the NY Post.
Mayor Bill de Blasio completely supports the legislation. During a press briefing, the mayor spoke of the City Council, “I want to thank the City Council. They’ve been really, I think, focused in a good smart way. This is one where we want to make sure people are treated fairly.”