The pandemic has led to the rapid development of food ordering platforms in Hong Kong, and they remain a common dining practice among consumers even after resumption of normalcy. As the popularity of food ordering platforms grows, related complaints received by the Consumer Council have also increased significantly over the past few years, from 101 cases in 2019 to 1,061 cases in 2023, an increase exceeding 9-fold. In view of this, the Council earlier conducted 56 trials of food order and delivery services through the mobile apps of 6 popular food ordering platforms used by Hong Kong people to examine the quality of services provided. It was found that about 60% of the orders were not delivered according to the estimated time provided by the platforms to customers, which would easily disrupt consumers’ plans. Even when ordering within the same time frame from the same eatery, the delivery time varied by as much as an hour among different platforms. In addition, there were discrepancies in menus, pricing, and concessions offered by the same eatery on different platforms, and most of the food ordering platforms charged more than customer takeaway, with some by 50% to 80% higher. On the other hand, to prevent tipping over or leakage of food items during delivery, some eateries used multiple layers of packaging which created more waste. The Council recommends food ordering platforms to continuously raise service standards and improve logistic processes, while at the same time taking proactive measures to encourage eateries to use environmentally friendly and safe packaging to support the concept of sustainable consumption.
In December last year, Council staff posing as mystery shoppers conducted 56 trial orders through 6 food ordering platforms during lunch and dinner sessions in 11 districts across Hong Kong. A total of 177 food items were ordered, covering set menus, a la carte items and beverages, such as fried chicken set, spaghetti carbonara set, rice noodles in pan-fried fish soup with iced glass jelly and red bean drink, etc., and delivery service was selected. 3 platforms were aggregate online food ordering platforms (“aggregate platforms”), while the other 3 were in-house platforms of chain eateries (“eatery chain platforms”). Areas covered in the trial included whether the food was delivered on time, the condition of the food upon delivery, details of charges, the amount of packaging and materials used, the ease of use of the food ordering platforms, and customer support services.
60% of Deliveries Were Late or Early
Longest Expected Delivery Time 89 Minutes
Hong Kong people live a fast-paced life, especially salaried people whose meals are daily races against time, so whether the food can be delivered on time is of the utmost importance. Among the 6 order platforms tested, 2 showed estimated delivery at a given specific time, while the other 4 displayed time slots with a given range.
Out of the 56 trials, there were 9 (16%) cases where the actual delivery was later than the estimated time; 4 of these cases belonged to the same aggregate platform, where the shortest estimated delivery time was 25-35 minutes and the longest was 35-45 minutes, with a 10-minute buffer for each time slot, but it was still 19 minutes late in the case with the longest delay. Another aggregate platform which also showed the estimated time of delivery in time slots was also late on 2 occasions, and its estimated time slots were longer, with 1 order estimated to be delivered in 43 to 68 minutes with a 25-minute buffer, but it was still late by 10 minutes. For 2 eatery chain platforms which showed estimated delivery at a specific time, deliveries were late on 3 occasions, among which 1 order was 9 minutes late even though the delivery time was already estimated to be 59 minutes long; while for another order, despite not being late, had an estimated delivery time for as long as 89 minutes, which fell short of normal consumer expectations.
1 aggregate platform and 3 eatery chain platforms stated that customers could choose to cancel their orders if food was not delivered on time, while 2 aggregate platforms stated that orders could not be cancelled once confirmed by the eatery. Early delivery of food may also disrupt plans, for example, when the food is delivered before mealtime or before the customer arrives home. In 25 trials, food was delivered earlier than originally expected, and in some cases by over 30 minutes. The 2 platforms with the highest number of early arrivals (8 times and 6 times respectively) both showed the estimated delivery in time slots.
Delivery Time of the Same Meal by Different Platforms Could Be Almost
1 Hour Apart
Even when the same food items were ordered from the same eatery, the actual delivery time varied across platforms. In 1 trial, the triallist ordered pot stickers and soup noodle set meals from the same eatery on 3 different aggregate platforms respectively. The fastest platform delivered the food 23 minutes after ordering, while the slowest platform took 78 minutes (10 minutes late), a 55-minute discrepancy. In another 2 trials, the difference between the earliest and the latest delivery time was 20 minutes.
On the other hand, if a delivery person could not reach a customer upon arrival, various platforms had different policies, which included requiring the delivery person to contact customer service for support, or letting the delivery person dispose of the food if no one was available to collect the order. In addition, during trials, delivery staff were requested to call the customer upon arrival, but in 18 cases (32%), delivery staff did not call the triallists when the food was delivered, among which in 3 cases the delivery staff simply hung the bag of food outside the door without ringing the doorbell or knocking, while the other 15 cases did ring the doorbell.
Menu and Price from the Same Eatery Varied Among Platforms
Customer Pick-up Could Be 80% Cheaper
Using food ordering platforms is indeed “buying” convenience, as out of 141 comparable items, 114 (81%) were priced higher on food ordering platforms than self pick-up by customers from the eateries. On the 3 aggregate platforms, nearly 85% to over 90% of food items were priced higher than customer pick-up, with the greatest discrepancy (61.5%) of $16 for a fresh negitoro hand roll. Among the 3 eatery chain platforms, all food items on 1 platform were priced higher than customer pick-up, with a difference of almost 85% for a single order of fish burger, which had the highest percentage difference in this trial.
Furthermore, even when ordering from the same eatery, there were differences in menu choices, prices, and concessions among different food ordering platforms. On 6 occasions, triallists ordered food from the same eatery in the same district through 3 different aggregate platforms at roughly the same time and requested delivery to the same address, among which on 2 occasions, food items available on different platforms were not exactly the same. In 1 trial, when the triallist ordered the same items from different platforms, including pot stickers, soup noodle set with bubble tea, and wonton with chili oil, etc., there was a 7.7% difference between the highest ($168) and lowest ($156) priced platforms.
In addition, most platforms in the trials charged a delivery fee ranging from $3 to $35, among which 3 aggregate platforms even charged an additional $2 to $5 platform fee or service fee.
The trial also compared prices between ordering the same food directly from eatery chain platforms and from aggregate platforms. The results showed that some aggregate platforms charged higher prices, such as in 1 case the total cost of the meal plus platform fee was 21% higher than ordering directly from the relevant eatery chain platform. However, some aggregate platforms offer concessions such as discounts for the whole bill, and designated discounted items, etc. which may result in overall cheaper orders. The Council recommends consumers to compare prices of meals and concessions across different platforms before ordering to make smarter choices.
Overpackaging or Neglecting to Skip Cutlery as Requested
In the course of food delivery, mishaps of various scales are sometimes inevitable. In the trials, it was found that some food items arrived in haphazard state, with squashed packaging and leaking food sauces, beverages tipped over, or even missing items such as vegetables and kimchi missing from pot stickers or soup noodle sets. In addition, many food items were delivered at unsatisfactory temperatures and with excessive condensation. Triallists subsequently contacted customer service of relevant food order platforms for follow-up action, and some platforms eventually refunded a part of the order or provided coupons as compensation.
To minimise delivery mishaps and/or keep the food in good condition, some eateries may put the soup and noodles in separate containers, use extra plastic containers for sauces, cling-wrap the containers to keep food warm and avoid spillage, use plastic bags to package drinks separately, and use cardboard or paper trays to separate drinks from plastic food containers. In this trial, about 810 food containers and cutlery items, about 110 plastic bags (including those for cutlery), and 45 paper bags were used, with plastic containers and cutlery accounting for a larger proportion (470 items). Although some platforms allowed consumers to decline cutlery, and even had “no cutlery” as the default setting, when triallists specified no cutlery on 51 occasions, in 26 times food was delivered with full or partial sets of disposable cutlery. Even though food deliveries are convenient, consumers should bear in mind that overpackaging creates extra waste. Therefore, consumers could consider dining in or bringing their own utensils for self-collected orders as much as possible to minimise the detrimental impact on our planet.
Consumers who find it necessary to order food deliveries can follow these tips when using food ordering platforms:
- Prices of deliveries through food ordering platforms are generally higher than self pick-up orders. Consumers should consider whether delivery is necessary when ordering food;
- Different platforms offer varying menus, prices, and concessions. Consumers may consider downloading the apps of different platforms for comparison;
- Food delivery time may take longer during peak hours. When placing the order, consumers should pay attention to whether the estimated delivery time meets their expectation to avoid disruption of plans;
- If there are errors or omissions in the delivery or if the food is not in a good condition, take photos as records for evidence when negotiating with food ordering platforms. Also, contact the platform's customer service immediately to request a replacement or refund;
- Consumers should bring their own reusable cutlery as much as possible, and choose to decline cutlery when ordering food. At the same time, food ordering platforms should have “no cutlery” as the default setting and urge eateries to adhere to consumer choices to reduce waste caused by takeaways.
Download the article (Chinese only): https://ccchoice.org/568foodordering
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