Today, DoorDash announced a series of relief measures for restaurant partners, including waiving some commissions and marketing support. The new initiatives are in response to the coronavirus pandemic and its economic impacts on restaurants across the country. Many restaurants have chosen or been forced to operate on an off-premise only model. 

“Around the globe, the restaurants that form the backbone of our communities are being asked to change how they operate. From limiting their occupancy to closing their doors to dining guests, these businesses are facing the prospect of lost sales, making it harder for them to meet their daily expenses. Yet these restaurants continue to serve their customers by remaining open for delivery and pickup, and now, more than ever, they need all of our support,” said Tony Xu, the CEO and co-founder of DoorDash in a news release. 

DoorDash’s new initiatives include:

•    No commission for 30 days for new independent restaurants in the U.S. that sign up for DoorDash now or through April. 
•    Existing DoorDash restaurants will pay no commission fees on pickup orders. 
•    DoorDash to add more than 100,000 independent restaurant partners to DashPass, its subscription program which offers $0 delivery for consumers, for free. 
•    Caviar restaurant partners will be able to participate in a $0 delivery fee program. 
•    DoorDash is earmarking up to $20 million in merchant marketing programs.

Related:Grubhub to suspend some fees for independent restaurants in light of coronavirus pandemic

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In the same annoucement, DoorDash pledged a donation of one million pounds of groceries and prepared food through United Way Worldwide and a "priority access program" to help restaurant workers sign up as Dashers in light of recent layoffs and reduced hours for workers in the industry. DoorDash also said it was providing financial assistance to eligible couriers who are diagnosed with COVID-19 or quarantined. The company is also changing the default delivery method to a no-contact option.

Uber Eats and Grubhub have both previously announced relief efforts for restaurants. Grubhub went so far as to temporarily suspended collection of up to $100 million in commission payments from impacted independent restaurants nationwide.

Third-party marketplaces such as DoorDash, Grubhub and Uber Eats have previously come under fire for the fees they charge to restaurants. Sometimes these fees are as high as 30%.

Contact Gloria Dawson at [email protected]

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