Good news for delivery riders and drivers of online businesses who have fallen victim to hoax orders: a bill by Senator Robin Padilla seeks to require delivery service providers to pay riders in full in cases where there is a cancellation of confirmed orders.
Senate Bill 1385 also seeks to impose hefty penalties on those who make hoax orders and unjustified cancellations, as well as those who refuse to receive unpaid orders.
“The predicament of our food and delivery service workers from unjustified cancellation and hoax orders amid the soaring fuel prices has put them in a very challenging state. To make matters worse, the drivers are left with no recourse in some instances as the perpetrator uses fraudulent means such as fake names and contact details,” Padilla said in his bill.
“It mandates proper customer registration with mobile phone applications, websites, or other platforms by providing valid proof of identity and residential address.”
“The proposed measure ensures that riders are paid in full by the delivery service provider in cases wherein there is a cancellation of confirmed orders. More so, it mandates proper customer registration with mobile phone applications, websites or other platforms by providing valid proof of identity and residential address,” the legislator added.
The lawmaker noted that while recent times have boosted employment opportunities for delivery riders and drivers, they are at a disadvantage amid various issues in online transactions such as cancellation of confirmed orders, hoax orders, and customer refusal to receive unpaid orders.
A survey of the Institute of Labor Services in 2021 showed 90% of 100 food and service delivery riders have experienced “canceled” food orders or package delivery requests. For such cancellations, a rider spends an average of P441.14 sourced from their own pockets
The senator’s bill likewise mandates proper customer registration with mobile phone applications, websites or other platforms by providing valid proof of identity and residential address, while providing penal provisions “that will aim to deter the fraudulent use of personal information, placing of hoax orders and similar acts that have burdened the already impoverished delivery riders”.
“The delivery service provider shall pay in full the rider or driver within the same day when a person cancels a confirmed order.”
Under the bill, the delivery service provider shall pay in full the rider or driver within the same day when a person cancels a confirmed order, without prejudice to recovering the amount paid to the latter.
The delivery service providers shall require customers to submit a valid proof of identity and residential address prior to registration – provided that the processing of personal information shall comply with the Data Privacy Act of 2012.
Imprisonment of up to three months and/or a fine of up to P100,000 await those who:
* use another person’s personal information
* place a hoax order using a fictitious name, address or contact number
* refuse to receive an unpaid order
Meanwhile, the licenses and permits of delivery service providers shall be revoked if they do not pay the rider or driver within the same day when a person cancels a confirmed order.
