Skip The Dishes adds ‘B.C. Fee’ due to province’s commission cap
Posted February 3, 2021 8:59 pm.
Last Updated February 3, 2021 11:23 pm.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – If you order from Skip The Dishes you might be paying a little extra.
The food delivery company has introduced a 99-cent “B.C. Fee” to make up for the 15 per cent cap on what they can charge restaurants. Instead of steep commissions for local eateries, the Skip The Dishes app says “you will now see a charge added to all orders in B.C. until the order is lifted.”
It seems Skip The Dishes is passing fees it can no longer charge restaurants onto customers… a 99 cent "BC Fee" will be added to all orders until the province rolls back that 15% cap on commissions.
We're hearing from @iantostenson who calls it tone deaf. @NEWS1130 pic.twitter.com/gIvqRn9EWH
— Bailey Nicholson ???? (@bcjnicholson) February 4, 2021
The president of the BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association calls it tone deaf.
“It makes me angry because we’ve been trying to get [delivery companies] to get in the spirit of helping our critical restaurant industry in British Columbia,” Ian Tostenson said.
“Now [Skip The Dishes says] ‘Oh well, we can’t charge restaurants, we’ll just charge consumers’ — I call it tone deaf. I think it’s really outside of good partnership,” he added.
From taxes to delivery fees to driver tips, Tostensen points out these charges all add up.
“Suddenly, now you go, ‘That’s an extra $30 — where did that come from?'” he said, though he was quick to note he doesn’t think this extra charge will make too many customers stop using the delivery service.
Related: Skip third-party delivery services to better support restaurants, says industry rep
“Will a dollar make a difference for people? Not probably, because it’s convenience and people want it. And they can pick their price points. I’m not too worried about that,” Tostensen said.
Still, he says these kinds of moves can sometimes make customers revolt.
“They don’t like that because they like to be as much in charge of what they pay,” he said. “They like to have control, they like to have openness and full disclosure. Just trying to sneak in a fee — whether it’s $1 or $10 — it’s just the way it’s been done is not in [the right] spirit.”
Tostenson also says calling it the “B.C. Fee” — which could easily blend into orders and look like a provincial tax — is a sneaky move.
