It’s safe to say that Instacart has significantly impacted both how we shop for groceries, and how people earn money in the gig economy.
However, if you’re a shopper, you might be wondering why an Instacart customer reported an order missing, when you know you delivered it. Is it a scam, or a misunderstanding? Here’s what you need to know!
Key Takeaways
Why Instacart Customer Reported Order Missing In 2022?
Instacart customers may report an order missing for a few reasons, with the most innocent being that the order was delivered, but they cannot see it or find it on their property. Unfortunately, Instacart also offers the opportunity for thieving customers to report orders missing fraudulently, which can hurt shoppers ratings in 2022.
This is a really serious issue that we need to get into deeper, including what you should do if the customer reports their order as missing, and more, so keep reading for more facts!
What Should You Do If a Customer Reports an Order Missing?
When a customer reports that an entire order is missing, it can be an incredibly distressing situation for the shopper, especially if you know you delivered that order.
You can make things right with Instacart if you took a photo of the items where you left them, as most – but unfortunately not all – shoppers do.
The best thing you can do is reach out in the Shopper app to Instacart Support. You can give the company a call, but the live chat is recommended.
Instacart Support reps tend not to give out sensitive personal information about the orders, but they can say what time the order was delivered.
Explain that, despite their claim, you have proof that it was delivered; you can send a screenshot of the image right in the chat.
If you can, be as specific as possible when describing where you left the items. It could be that the customer simply didn’t see them.
However, it’s important to face the fact that some customers are going to take advantage of Instacart’s generous refund policy.
They’re going to report their order missing, especially if you didn’t take a photo of the delivery, knowing that Instacart is likely going to refund them the entirety of the order.
It’s a truly unfair situation where you, the shopper, lose out, because the customer’s rating still stands.
If they gave you a low rating to correlate with their story that the order wasn’t delivered, that unfortunately sticks and can impact your future with Instacart.
Do Instacart Shoppers Get Penalized for Missing Items?
Instacart doesn’t make its shoppers pay up when items or orders go missing, but shoppers do get penalized in other ways.
Generally, a missing item or an entirely missing order would be cause for a low rating for many customers.
Those low ratings affect the shoppers’ overall average, which is used to determine in what order they can access batches.
Lower ratings mean the shopper is further down the pipeline, so all the high-earning batches get snapped up by five-star shoppers.
Finally, shoppers may find that their initially generous tip gets docked, like if they dropped off the wrong order on your porch.
Will Instacart Deactivate You for Missing items?
Instacart might not necessarily deactivate your account because you messed up one order, but a pattern of mistakes will make the company consider whether this is the gig for you.
Missing items or missing an entire order one too many times shows Instacart that you might not have the sense of responsibility needed.
Or, customers may give you low ratings, which can indirectly lead Instacart to deactivating you.
Further, if Instacart can prove that you have actually stolen items, or an entire order, you can consider your deactivation instant and likely permanent.
This is why, if you have proof that you did not steal items or steal an entire order, you absolutely should fight it.
Can You Report a Customer on Instacart?
If you have been accused of not delivering an order, and you have proof that you did, or if a customer is behaving poorly toward you, you can report them through Instacart Support.
Unlike customers, who can report in the app through the rating system, shoppers do have to take a few extra steps.
However, through the Instacart Support live chat or via phone, shoppers can complain about a customer.
If there are enough complaints, the customer’s account gets flagged; they could even get it taken away and deactivated if their bad behavior continues.
To know more, you can also read our posts on Instacart refund, Instacart complaints, and Instacart waitlist.
Conclusion
If you’re an Instacart shopper, and you have had a customer fraudulently claim that you did not deliver their order, you should contact Instacart Support immediately.
As a good rule of thumb for all future endeavors, take photos of your deliveries so that, if you should ever be accused of stealing, you have the proof stating otherwise.