Instacart Settles Class Action for $4.6M

Grocery delivery provider Instacart will settle a $4.6 million class action and change how it explains fees to customers, technology news site Recode has reported.

Independent contractors working for the San Francisco-based company claimed 18 violations, including “improper tip pooling and failure to reimburse workers for business expenses,” the news outlet reported. Instacart still denies claims against it.

Three workers actively involved in the class action will receive $5,000 each, with the rest getting either $1,000 or $500 each. Those not named in the suit will receive up to roughly $200 each. Additionally, Recode reported that Instacart must alter the way it describes its new service fee, which has upset workers due to poor communication to customers that the fee is actually a tip. Also poorly communicated is where customers actually are supposed to tip delivery people.

Other requirements from the settlement reported by the website include the service provider's creation of a policy properly explaining the circumstances that can lead to a worker being “deactivated from the Instacart system,” – or let go from employment by the company – and a process for disputing “deactivation.”