DoorDash, Uber sue NYC over tipping law
According to data from the city, New Yorkers are paying higher fees and tipping less.
Food delivery giants DoorDash and Uber Eats said Thursday that they are suing New York City over a law that would prompt customers to tip at checkout as opposed to after their meals arrive.
The companies say the law is “essentially an added tax” and pressures consumers to tip. The law, which is poised to take effect in January, was a response to changes the companies made following a different law that set a minimum wage for the city’s delivery workers.
After the minimum wage law took effect in December 2023, DoorDash and Uber responded by moving their tipping prompt from checkout to after the food is delivered — delaying sticker shock for takeout as overall spending on the platforms steadily increases. According to data from the city, the result is that New Yorkers are paying higher fees and tipping less.
It’s not the first time the delivery giants have gone to war with the city. The two companies also sued unsuccessfully to block the minimum wage law.
The move also comes after Zohran Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist pro-worker candidate, won the race for New York City mayor and is poised to take office next month. DoorDash donated $1 million to a super PAC supporting Andrew Cuomo, the former governor who challenged Mamdani.
