Limit food delivery app fees during pandemic, says MPP

An eastern Ontario MPP is calling on the province to temporarily cap fooddelivery fees charged by app-based services like Uber Eats so that restaurants can financially survive the COVID-19 pandemic.

Amanda Simard, the Liberal MPP for Glengarry-Prescott-Russell, wants the Ford government to issue an emergency order restricting delivery fees to a "reasonable" 15 per cent, as has been done in New York City and Los Angeles.

With restaurateurs relyingsolely on takeout and delivery during the pandemic, some have claimedthe fees charged by those services are too highand are putting their long-term survival at risk.

Some third-party delivery services, Simard said, have been charging as much as 30 per cent to get meals into customers' hands.

"It would be temporary. It's an emergency measure. And it's to ensure that they can pay the bills especially their rent and [the wages of] the employees," shetold CBC Ottawa'sAll In A DayThursday.

"Other jurisdictions have already put such a cap in place, and I think that we need to follow suit and do the same."

On Thursday, Simard sent a letter to Prabmeet Sarkaria, Ontario's associate minister of Small Business, arguing thatfees reward "one business at the unnecessary expense of many others."

Simard wrote that shewas echoingsentiments expressed by both Toronto Mayor John Tory and the Ontario Restaurant, Hotel and Motel Association.

She toldAll In A Daythat delivery services are benefiting from the name recognition generated during the pandemic, as people stuck at home increasingly pull up appstoget food brought totheir doorstep.

"These are good services. I've used them several times, and they have to continue. SoI fully support the delivery services," Simard said.

"But we need to make sure it's fair for the small businesses ... and also the customer."

As of Thursday afternoon, Simard saidshe had not heard back from the province.

Certain delivery services have previously told CBCNews that they've cut commission fees for restaurants during the pandemic, noting they cover business costs like paying and insuring their drivers. For instance, Uber Eats reduced its commission from 30 per cent to 15 per cent for a month to restaurants who use their own employees as drivers.

Some restaurateurs, meanwhile, are simplygiving up on conventional apps.

in Ottawa,Love Local Delivery, partlycreated by restaurant owners, scrapped thecommission system altogether and instead is having restaurants paythe service $2 while the customer pays$5 to have their meal delivered up to five kilometres from the restaurant,plus $1.50 for each additional kilometre.