It\u2019s a fresh new fee!<\/p>\n
Grocery delivery app Instacart<\/a> abruptly began charging Big Apple residents a new \u201cregulatory response fee\u201d this week after sweeping changes to the city\u2019s delivery worker laws were enacted Monday, The Post has learned.<\/p>\n Grocery delivery app Instacart began suddenly hitting Big Apple residents with a new \u201cregulatory response fee.\u201d Bloomberg via Getty Images<\/p>\n \u201cNYC regulatory response fees appear in the order summary,\u201d the FAQ section of Instacart\u2019s website now reads<\/a> \u2014 a marked change from archived versions of the site just one month prior. An explanation of the fee reads that it \u201chelps cover increased operating costs in NYC due to government regulations on delivery platforms.\u201d<\/p>\n A Post analysis of orders prior to Monday found no such fee tacked on. Yet by Tuesday, a $5.99 fee was applied to orders ranging from $35 to $184.<\/p>\n Instacart confirmed the fee took effect Monday and blamed \u201cthe City Council\u2019s misguided and burdensome grocery delivery laws,\u201d in a statement to The Post. <\/p>\n \u201cFor months, we raised clear, data-backed concerns that the policy would increase grocery delivery costs for New Yorkers, but those warnings were repeatedly ignored,\u201d the statement said. <\/p>\n The city\u2019s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection is investigating the matter, a rep said.<\/p>\n Instacart was already in hot water after an explosive study last month found the company used a shady algorithm that charges different prices to different customers for the same items<\/a> without telling them.<\/p>\n The city\u2019s new worker protections, which took effect under a new law Monday, include expanded minimum pay to drivers working for grocery delivery apps like Instacart. AP<\/p>\n The city\u2019s new worker protections, which took effect under a new law Monday,<\/a> include expanded minimum pay to drivers working for grocery delivery apps like Instacart.<\/p>\n Excluding tips, the minimum hourly rate is $21.44 an hour with annual increases.<\/p>\n New York City law now also requires\u00a0food delivery apps such as Uber Eats and DoorDash<\/a>\u00a0to provide customers a tipping option before checkout \u2014 and sets the default option to at least 10% of an order\u2019s cost.<\/p>\n