Instacart workers eligible for a piece of DC lawsuit settlement

Instacart workers in the District may be eligible for a cash settlement as part of the D.C. Attorney General’s recent settlement with Instacart over service fees it accused the company of disguising as driver tips.

D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb announced those who made deliveries in D.C. between Oct.1, 2016 and April 30, 2018, are eligible for refunds of $150 or more. Those who may be eligible must file a claim online by March 25.



Instacart settled the two-year-old lawsuit in August, without admitting any wrongdoing, for $2.54 million. The suit also had accused Instacart of failure to pay sales taxes.

A total of $1.8 million of the settlement is set aside for restitution to delivery workers, and to consumers, as well as legal expenses. The company also paid $739,000 in previously disputed sales taxes on the service fees and delivery fees collected between 2014 and 2020.

Instacart changed the service fee practice in 2018.

Instacart also agreed to no longer display fees or tips in a misleading manner, according to the settlement.

Jeff Clabaugh

Jeff Clabaugh has spent 20 years covering the Washington region's economy and financial markets for WTOP as part of a partnership with the Washington Business Journal, and officially joined the WTOP newsroom staff in January 2016.

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