How to Reduce Delivery Refunds by 50%: A Step-by-Step Guide

The Refund Problem

The average restaurant loses 3-5% of delivery revenue to refunds. For a restaurant doing $50k/month in delivery, that's $1,500-2,500 disappearing every month.

Some refunds are legitimate. Items get forgotten. Food arrives cold. Mistakes happen.

But many refunds are preventable—or disputable. Here's how to cut your refund rate in half.

Understanding Refund Types

Legitimate Refunds (Fix These)

Questionable Refunds (Dispute These)

Fraudulent Refunds (Fight These)

The Prevention System

Step 1: Order Verification Protocol

Before every delivery order leaves:

Time investment: 30 seconds per order

Reduction in refunds: 20-30%

Step 2: Photo Documentation

For every order:

Time investment: 10 seconds per order

Reduction in disputable refunds: 50%

Step 3: Seal Everything

Cost: $0.05-0.10 per order

Reduction in "missing item" claims: 40%

Step 4: Quality Control Checklist

Post a laminated checklist at the packing station:

The Dispute System

When refunds happen, don't just accept them. Here's how to dispute:

DoorDash Disputes

Success rate with documentation: 60-70%

UberEats Disputes

Success rate with documentation: 50-60%

Grubhub Disputes

Success rate with documentation: 40-50%

Identifying Repeat Offenders

Track refund requests by customer when possible:

The Results

Restaurants implementing this full system typically see:

The system takes about 2 hours to set up and adds 45 seconds to each order. The ROI is immediate.

Start Today

Your margins will thank you.