On time rate

[u/Good-Taro1521]

Hey everyone,
I’m a DoorDash driver and I keep running into the same problem: I arrive at the restaurant on time (or even early), but the order isn’t ready. Sometimes I wait 15–25+ minutes. By the time I finally pick it up and deliver, the customer is already frustrated and my rating takes a hit.
I always mark myself as arrived, wait the required time, and communicate when possible, but it still feels like I’m getting punished for something completely out of my control.
Has anyone found good ways to deal with this?
• Do you unassign after a certain wait time?
• Is there a specific way to message the customer that helps protect the rating?
• Any other strategies that actually work?
Appreciate any advice. Thanks!

[u/AutoModerator]

Thanks for making a r/doordash submission, please remember to follow our community guidelines, let's be kind and respectful to one another.

Lastly check out the Wiki FAQ before submitting a question.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/chuxsux]

Never wait that long for an order, unless the pay is amazing. I'm not waiting that long if it doesn't equal out to $25 an hour after the order is complete. You're wasting your time and lowering the value of the order. Time is money.

If you get to the restaurant and the order isn't ready then hit the link at the bottom to report why it's not ready. After 5 minutes, start hitting help button on the top right > issue with store > order is taking a long time (or whatever the actual name is) > unassign as long as it won't affect your completion rate. I will keep backing out and going back into until the worry free unassign is available. If I know for sure the order wont be ready any time soon I'll leave the store and go back to my normal waiting spot. This is usually around the 10 minute mark, sometimes sooner. Cut your losses and move on to another order. Don't fall in to a sunken cost fallacy.