TORONTO – Canada’s competition watchdog is suing DoorDash Inc. and its Canadian subsidiary for marketing its online delivery services at a lower price than what consumers actually wind up paying.
The Competition Bureau says an investigation found DoorDash customers were unable to purchase food and other items at prices advertised on DoorDash’s websites and mobile apps because of mandatory fees added at checkout.
The extra charges range from service and delivery fees to amounts sought for couriering things a further distance or placing smaller orders.
The bureau says the charges were sometimes framed as if they were taxes and resulted in consumers paying higher prices than advertised, amounting to a deceptive practice known as drip pricing.
The bureau alleges DoorDash used drip pricing for close to a decade, making nearly $1 billion from mandatory fees paid by customers.
It wants the company to stop the practice, cease portraying fees as taxes, pay a penalty and issue restitution to affected consumers, but DoorDash says the requests are “misguided” because it does not hide fees from consumers or mislead them in any way.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 9, 2025.
