Competition Bureau Files Case Against DoorDash Alleging Drip Pricing

The Competition Bureau of Canada filed an application with the Competition Tribunal on June 9, 2025, against DoorDash Inc. and its Canadian subsidiary. The Bureau alleges that DoorDash promoted its online delivery services at prices and discounts lower than what customers were required to pay because mandatory fees were added at checkout.

The Bureau claims this practice, known as drip pricing, resulted in consumers paying higher prices or receiving lower discounts than those advertised. Drip pricing refers to the addition of mandatory fees during the purchasing process, rather than showing the total cost upfront.

According to the Bureau, DoorDash adds several mandatory fees to orders at checkout. These include service fees, delivery fees, expanded range fees, small order fees, and regulatory response fees.

The Bureau alleges that some of these fees are presented in a way that gives the impression they are taxes, but states that these charges are imposed at DoorDash’s discretion.

The Bureau claims these practices have occurred for close to a decade and that DoorDash has collected nearly $1 billion in mandatory fees from consumers. The Bureau’s application asks the Tribunal to require DoorDash to stop the alleged deceptive advertising, stop portraying certain fees as taxes, pay a penalty, and provide restitution to affected consumers.

The Bureau notes that amendments to the Competition Act came into force on June 23, 2022, explicitly prohibiting the advertising of unattainable prices that do not include mandatory fixed charges, unless those charges are imposed by the government, such as sales tax. Before these amendments, the Bureau had addressed drip pricing under the Act’s Deceptive Marketing Practices provisions.

The Bureau also referenced a previous case. In September 2024, it prevailed in an action against Cineplex for similar conduct, with the Competition Tribunal ordering Cineplex to pay $39 million and to end the practices in question.

DoorDash operates an online platform that connects consumers with local restaurants, grocery stores, and convenience stores and facilitates delivery of those orders through its websites and mobile applications.