May 18, 2026
Federal Trade Commission
Attn: Andrew Ferguson, Chair
Posted on regulations.gov
Food Delivery Fees ANPRM (Project No. P267101); FTC-2026-0463-0001
Re: Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees in Online Food Delivery Services
On behalf of National Taxpayers Union (NTU), the nation’s oldest taxpayer advocacy organization, I write with brief remarks on FTC-2026-0463-0001, an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) regarding whether a new rule is needed to address fee practices by online food and grocery delivery platforms. NTU was founded in 1969 to achieve favorable policy outcomes for taxpayers with Congress and the executive branch. Our experts and advocates engage federal policymakers on important matters affecting taxpayers in a variety of settings, including administrative actions that influence the cost and predictability of federal regulations.
We urge the Commission to exercise restraint before imposing sweeping regulations on the highly competitive and dynamic online marketplace for food delivery. At a time when many consumers are struggling with affordability concerns, it’s no surprise that some may express frustration with the cost of delivery services. However, discontent with prices displayed on online platforms does not necessarily constitute evidence of fraud, deception, or even market failure. Specific pricing practices identified in the ANPRM, such as marked-up menu prices or service fees assessed at checkout, reflect the underlying operational realities of a market characterized by constantly fluctuating costs. Supply-side factors such as driver availability, kitchen capacity, and energy costs are just a few of the variables that continuously interact with consumer preferences for speed and convenience to shape real-time delivery prices.
Just like in any other market, price signals in online food delivery help allocate scarce resources, and the Commission should avoid enacting new mandates that would prevent a rapidly growing industry from functioning efficiently. Previous enforcement actions cited in the ANPRM demonstrate that the Commission already has broad authority under Section 5 of the FTC Act to pursue genuinely misleading and deceptive behavior, such as failing to disclose mandatory fees at any stage of the purchase. However, these individual enforcement actions do not suggest a broader market failure in the online food delivery sector. In fact, consistently high cart abandonment rates are evidence that prices are functioning exactly as they should by giving consumers the information they need to make informed decisions before they complete a purchase.
In addition to distorting price signals, new regulations could inadvertently stifle competition by entrenching the market power of incumbent platforms that are best suited to absorb compliance costs. Large online delivery platforms with established market share possess extensive technological and legal capabilities that smaller upstarts often lack. New mandates about how fees and total prices are displayed on digital interfaces could effectively act as a barrier to entry for new market entrants and, in turn, result in upward pressure on delivery prices. At a time when affordability is a widespread concern among the American people, policymakers should be wary about the unintended consequences of new regulations on market concentration.
Sophisticated technology companies would hardly be the only economic actors impacted by misguided regulations. Many independent restaurants and other retail establishments rely on third-party delivery services to reach their customers. Were the Commission to issue a rule mandating “all-in’’ or upfront pricing for online food delivery, platforms would invariably increase their baseline fees to account for the added risk. The ensuing downward pressure on order volume would not just harm restaurants and retailers, but also the millions of independent contractors who work as drivers for online delivery platforms.
Online food delivery is a highly competitive industry with thin margins. In such an environment, the costs associated with complying with new regulations are likely to be passed on to consumers and small businesses. Until evidence of systematic market failure becomes apparent, the Commission should refrain from enacting any new broad and prescriptive rules and instead focus on its existing enforcement authorities to address misconduct by bad actors on a targeted basis.
Thank you for your consideration of these comments, and, should you have any questions on this or any other regulatory matter before the Federal Trade Commission, we are at your service.
Sincerely,
Alexander Ciccone
Policy and Government Affairs Manager
National Taxpayers Union