New York City has new laws regulating online third-party food delivery services (Delivery Apps).
Starting January 24, 2022, each Delivery App will require a license to operate in NYC. Restaurants will now have greater protections when they interact with Delivery Apps. But restaurants also have a few new requirements they need to follow.
As a NYC restaurant, the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) wants you to know how these new laws might affect you. Please read the enclosed overview. For copies of the Laws and Rules, please visit nyc.gov/DeliveryApps.
In addition to requiring Delivery Apps to obtain a license, the laws:
- Set caps on the fees that Delivery Apps can charge restaurants:
- Delivery fees are capped at 15% of the purchase price of each online order.
- Transaction fees are capped at 3% of the purchase price of each online order, with limited exceptions.
- All other fees are capped at a total of 5% of each online order.
- Prohibit Delivery Apps from charging you for telephone orders that do not result in a transaction during the call.
- Require that if Delivery Apps list or link to a phone number for your restaurant, the Delivery App must list your direct telephone number and, if a Delivery App provides another telephone number, it must clearly identify each telephone number as either your number or a third-party telephone number. The Delivery App must also describe any fee associated with the use of each telephone number, whether imposed on you or the caller.
- Prohibit unauthorized listings on a Delivery App’s website, mobile app or other platform without a written agreement between you and the Delivery App.
- The written agreement cannot compel you to indemnify a Delivery App or any independent contractor or agent acting on its behalf for any damage or harm occurring after the food has left your business.
- NEW REQUIREMENT FOR RESTAURANTS: Starting January 24, 2022, any written agreement you enter into with a Delivery App must contain a provision allowing delivery workers access to your bathroom, with limited exceptions for health and safety reasons.
- In some cases, require Delivery Apps to provide you with certain customer data at your request unless the customer opts out. Customer data includes only:
- The name, telephone number; e-mail address, the delivery address of the online order; and the contents of the online order.
- In those cases where customer data is required to be shared, prohibit Delivery Apps from limiting your ability to download such data and from limiting your use of such data for marketing or other purposes outside of the Delivery App’s own website or mobile app.
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