DoorDash looks to dash doubts on alcohol home deliveries in Kansas

TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) - As Kansas legislators continue to mull a bill that would allow the home delivery of alcohol through services such as DoorDash, the company has made an effort to dash any doubts.

During a hearing held on Senate Bill 253 on Friday, March 10, Alexi Madon spoke on behalf of DoorDash, a third-party delivery company. Legislators continue to mull the legislation which would allow malt beverages and liquor to be delivered through third-party delivery services.

The bill specifies that delivery drivers who pick up such orders will be required to be over the age of 21. However, DoorDash said this is no problem.

DoorDash takes the delivery of alcoholic beverages very seriously and is committed to the safe and legal delivery of these products,” Madon told state leaders. “DoorDash does not allow drivers under 21 to facilitate any delivery with alcohol.”

Currently, in other states, Madon indicated that Dashers get a robust Delivering Alcohol Guidelines booklet during the onboarding process which includes a step-by-step overview of the delivery process. Dashers are also subject to a test and are barred from delivery until they pass.

The bill also requires those that purchase alcohol to be above the age of 21 years old. To this end, Madon said DoorDash is also prepared with state-of-the-art technology.

“DoorDash uses state-of-the-art technology to verify the age and identification of the customer both prior to the sale of alcohol on our platform and at the point of delivery,” Madon noted. “The enhanced two-step, dual ID verification requires customers to upload a valid ID before completing their purchase on our app and Dashers to scan the front of a customer’s ID to verify before handing off and completing the delivery.”

Madon also said the tech is comprehensive, whereas regular ID checks scan a barcode to check for age, DoorDash’s system validates the authenticity of the ID with state validation guidelines, temper checks, expiration dates and the visual security symbol while also verifying age.

“We applaud the many safety restrictions in the bill and want to echo our support for them, as Dashers are not allowed, via DoorDash policy, to deliver alcohol to anyone that doesn’t match the photo ID or is visibly intoxicated, Madon said. “Should either of those things happen upon delivery, they may touch a button in the app to speak directly with a DoorDash customer service agent who will instruct them on next steps.”

DoorDash also shared data from other states where the home delivery of alcohol is already legal. It said data shows that orders that include alcohol can significantly increase the order’s value. For example, order values were an average of 50% higher when alcohol was added. Similar trends were seen for grocery deliveries.

“In turn, these increased order values reflect an increase in driver pay, which is already upwards of $22 per hour while active on the platform,” Madon noted. “Dashers on average make 30% more on deliveries that include alcohol.”

According to Madon, the move would also benefit independent local liquor stores, which have found success on the platform in other states. In fact, DoorDash data found the average independent liquor store in 2022 saw sales increase by over 180% and total liquor store sales on the platform across the nation have grown 295% in the past year.

The text of the legislation indicates that anyone caught in violation of the guidelines set forth in the bill could be fined up to $1,000.

To read the full text of the bill, click HERE.