Under a proposed Seattle City Council ordinance, restaurant delivery fees would be capped at 15 percent.
According to a presentation from the Council, the ordinance would “require food delivery platforms to engage in agreed-upon, reasonable, and transparent business transactions when operating in Seattle to protect the interests of consumers and restaurants.”
The presentation also claimed that 77 percent of local restaurants offer delivery, and food delivery platforms account for 21 to 30 percent of current restaurant sales in the city.
The move would make permanent a COVID-era rule to cap fees that started in April 2020 and a following cap on “platform fees” of 18 percent that came in November of 2020. Both caps are set to expire when the mayor’s civil emergency order ends.
The new cap would cover all fees required for delivery services, seemingly including a regulatory fee, like the one DoorDash added to markets with fee caps. In Seattle, for instance, the company added a $1 to $2.50 surcharge it called a “regulatory response fee.” Similar fees are added in other markets with caps like Chicago, Philadelphia and Denver.
Also under the proposal, restaurants could opt out of the cap and allow higher fees for ancillary services like marketing and consulting. The ordinance is set for a vote in early August.
The full presentation is available from the Seattle City Council.
