A Class Action Against Uber Eats Was Approved & Could Mean A $100 Payout For Quebecers

What does the Uber Eats class action lawsuit concern?

Uber Eats is accused of charging a delivery fee that was automatically added to the total amount each time a customer paid on the mobile app or website. However, the charges were not announced before checking out.

Members of the class represented by Lambert Avocats allege that the lack of info about delivery costs before a meal selection was a violation of section 224 c) of Quebec's Consumer Protection Law.

"The advertised price must include the total amount the consumer must pay for the goods or services, except for applicable taxes, and make sure to specifically single out each underlying fee, including the delivery fees," the Montreal-based law office wrote on its website.

Lambert Avocats is now seeking $100 per transaction as punitive damages for each member of the class, defined as "all people residing in Quebec who made a transaction on the Uber Eats mobile app or on the website www.ubereats.com and who paid a delivery fee from July 4, 2017, through April 20, 2021."

What does Uber have to say about the class action?

Uber countered that the Consumer Protection Law allows companies to display "separate prices for separate goods and services," Judge Pierre Nollet recounted in his ruling approving the lawsuit. According to that argument, delivery and food prices wouldn't need to appear together.

Asked for a comment on this story, an Uber spokesperson said the company "[maintains] that the applicable fees have always been adequately disclosed in the app." The spokesperson added that there have been "display changes" to Uber Eats since the period covered by the lawsuit.

Unless the parties reach a settlement, Uber Eats will have to justify its reasoning in court.