‘I didn’t leave a tip’: Viewers divided after DoorDash driver destroys customer’s Dunkin’ delivery

Photo byDiego Thomazini/Shutterstock @ceros.tv/TikTok Nixx Photography/Shutterstock

A DoorDash customer admits not tipping led his delivery driver to destroy his Dunkin’ Donuts delivery.

Ceros Whaley (@ceros.tv), a TikTok user, posted a video that sparked his curiosity about the rules of tipping behavior, garnering over 124,000 views.

At the start of the video, Ceros stands outside his apartment door and sets the scene. “My DoorDasher just destroyed my entire DoorDash order,” Cero says. “Let me explain what happened.”

Husband orders Dunkin’ Donuts for wife

Since his spouse is a coffee enthusiast, Ceros decided to treat her to a medium latte and a strawberry donut from Dunkin’ to catch her off guard upon her awakening. However, the delivery was proceeding at a slower pace than he anticipated.

“I am just baffled about it, it takes two hours to get the order,” Ceros says.

Ceros made the decision to not leave a tip for the Dasher. “Now this is gonna probably spark some debate here immediately upon me not leaving a tip. I just didn’t have the money to leave a tip,” Ceros says.

Anticipating backlash about not just picking it up himself, Ceros made sure to inform viewers that he didn’t want to leave his sleeping wife alone on the off-chance she woke up when he wasn’t home.

“My wife freaks out when I leave in the morning because she likes waking up next to me, it’s like her favorite thing to do,” Ceros says.

DoorDash driver destroys Dunkin’ delivery

“So let’s get into this, the person comes up and immediately sees me and their eyes turn red and I get confused,” Ceros says.

Ceros reports that the dasher came in angry, hurling questions at Ceros about his refusal to leave a tip. "And right away, this sort of thing occurs," Ceros explains.

He switches the camera to his apartment's entrance. The view shows coffee stains on the steps and a cup that's been left standing tall and empty. The dasher had thrown Ceros' coffee all the way down the steps of his apartment.

“I was confused, my drink is right there, [he] just tossed my drink down for not leaving a tip. I asked, ‘Why did you do that?’ and he said ‘Have a good day’ and walked away naturally,” Ceros says.

Was destroying the order appropriate?

Ceros turned his attention to the camera and started to inquire whether the absence of a tip required this kind of reaction. Recognizing the annoyance, Ceros clarified that the dasher realized he wouldn't receive a tip after he had initially agreed to take the order.

“To destroy an entire order … is insane. I’m just looking at it, I’m not cleaning it up,” Ceros says.

Perplexed by the entire interaction, Ceros could not wrap his head around why a person would do this to prove a point. “It feels, partially … I don’t know, a bit of an overreaction, in my opinion. Maybe I’m psychotic […] but it feels like a bit of an overreaction,” Ceros says.

Fortunately for Ceros, when he reached out to DoorDash to share his recent encounter, it was reported that they also considered the dasher's response to be excessive. Therefore, Ceros got his money back for his first order and was also able to place another Dunkin' Donuts order.

“Now I’m scared to not leave a tip,” Ceros says.

Viewers react to the dasher’s decision

At the end of his video, Ceros makes it clear that he consistently makes an effort to leave a tip, though he admits this was an unusual situation. Still, numerous commenters were not in agreement with Ceros' choice not to tip in this instance.

“I just literally tipped $10 on a DoorDash order. If I don’t have the money to tip, I either order less or don’t order or go get it for myself,” wrote one commenter.

However, this wasn't the sole remark regarding the issue, as numerous viewers concurred that if Ceros couldn't spare the money for a tip, he shouldn't have placed the order at all. A lot saw tipping as the norm and an essential part of utilizing services such as DoorDash. Yet, others held the opposite view.

A former DoorDash driver disagreed with the rider's choice to ruin the Dunkin' order.

“I used to DoorDash for 2 years & I never expected a tip from anyone b/c before you accept an order, it tells you how much you’ll make w/o it. I always saw tips as a bonus for a job well done,” the viewer said.

Is tipping on the decline?

However one may feel, Ceros’ lack of tipping may not be exactly out of the ordinary. As tipping has been on the decline since 2019, and roughly 50% of people who use food delivery services don’t tip.

Even tipping at sit-down restaurants has declined immensely, with only 35% of Gen Z consumers and 50% of millennials always tipping. Comparing these numbers to the 80% of Gen Xers and 83% of Baby Boomers, it looks like tipping isn’t as common as it once was.

So whether you agree or disagree with Ceros’ lack of tipping, it may be important to think about going forward.