- Workers for DoorDash are using names other than their own to make deliveries, per TikTok videos.
- The practice makes some customers confused and others concerned for their safety, per TikTok videos.
- Gig workers share accounts on other apps, including Instacart and Walmart’s Spark.
Some gig delivery drivers aren’t who they appear to be.
Workers for DoorDash and other delivery services are using names other than their own to make deliveries, according to videos posted on TikTok and reporting by Insider. In many cases, the delivery workers appear to be using accounts set up by friends, partners, or other real people.
But the practice causes confusion — and, for some, safety concerns. If a driver delivers works under an account that doesn’t belong to them, they may not have undergone a criminal background check required by the app.
User llzklifestyle said in a video posted last week that she had a DoorDash order delivered by a driver she thought was a woman. In reality, her order was delivered by a man, she said.
“Have y’all heard of this new epidemic of people letting their boyfriends drive Uber or do DoorDash under their name?” she says in the video. “When you’re a person who only gives directions to get to your apartment to women, and you open the door for Ebony, and ‘Ebony’ actually happens to be Steve, that’s not okay!” The TikTok user did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider.
In a separate video, user shamarkanderson said he uses an account under a different name to deliver orders for DoorDash, according to a video posted in July 2022. “My driving record is horrible,” he says in the video.
Using an account under a different name has caused confusion for some customers he delivers to, he said. “I use the mother of my child’s DoorDash, right?” he says. “When they get the notification, it’s like ‘Abby’s on the way with your food,’ and then my big black self just pulls up out of nowhere, and they’re like ‘Ah, okay, Abby.'” The TikTok user did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider.
DoorDash told Insider that it verifies its drivers’ identities using a government-issued photo ID card and a selfie that each driver uploads. In some cases, the company asks users to re-verify themselves with another selfie — if different phones log into the same account, for example.
DoorDash has a “zero-tolerance” policy for users who share accounts with other people, it told Insider. Users who share accounts can be deactivated, according to the company.
Uber did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment.
Gig workers share accounts on other delivery apps, too. On Instacart, one shopper recently told Insider that he and his wife share accounts, in part because Instacart offers them different batches. Instacart told Insider that sharing accounts is grounds for deactivation.
Some workers who deliver orders for Walmart’s Spark service use multiple accounts and names on purpose, Insider reported earlier this month.
Walmart’s rollout of new facial-recognition and ID-scan technology to verify identities and prevent fraud has hit some snags, according to workers for Spark and Walmart.
Do you work for DoorDash, Uber, Instacart, or a similar app and have a story to share? Reach out to this reporter at [email protected]
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