To tip or not to tip? Netizens divided over Foodpanda driver’s request

Singapore — A delivery driver has taken to Facebook to speak up about an interaction with a customer who asked him for a favour.

In a Facebook group called “Complaint Singapore”, he uploaded a post with three screenshots and the following caption.

The first screenshot is of a warning letter he received from Foodpanda’s rider support team. In the letter, it is stated that the driver acted inappropriately towards a customer. The letter urges him to remain professional when interacting with customers, restaurant staff, and office staff since he is representing Foodpanda.

The letter also states that the incident will be recorded in the driver’s profile and that action will be taken if any such incidents occur again in the future.

The second and third screenshots the driver uploaded were of the conversation he had with the customer.

In the second screenshot, the customer asks the driver for a favour and requests him to help them purchase some cigarettes, promising to return the payment via Paynow afterwards.

In the last screenshot that the driver uploaded, the customer replies to the driver saying that he is not supposed to ask for tips. The customer goes on to say that tips are given when a customer can afford it and insists that they don’t have enough money to tip the driver.

The customer also says that by requesting a tip, the driver is essentially requesting extra money. Afterwards, the driver replies by saying that he is unable to help fulfil the customer’s request.

Netizens appeared to have different opinions on the issue. Some felt that a tip should have been given since the delivery driver was doing extra work. A netizen, in particular, stated that rather than calling it a tip, the term “labour cost” would be more appropriate instead.

Some others felt that in the first place, the delivery driver should not have accepted such a request. Instead, he should have just done his job.

Yet others cautioned the delivery driver to be more careful, especially since he was asked to buy cigarettes for the customer. They warned that the delivery driver could not be entirely sure of the customer’s age, which could lead to a lot of problems if his actions were discovered. /TISG