Does DoorDash deliver alcohol? In most states, DoorDash does deliver alcohol (although this will, of course, depend on your state laws on alcohol delivery). If you live in a state where alcohol delivery is permitted, you’ll likely be able to order alcohol via DoorDash. Some special rules come with getting alcohol delivered via DoorDash, however.
As a delivery driver for DoorDash (i.e. a Dasher), you may also receive alcohol delivery requests. There are some special rules with alcohol delivery, mainly that you need to qualify for alcohol delivery and will have to scan the customer’s ID using the Dasher app.
In this post, we’ll answer the question “Does DoorDash deliver alcohol.” We’ll also look at the important steps you must follow to order alcohol via DoorDash. And for Dashers, we’ll look at how alcohol delivery works on the Dasher’s side and whether this is something you’ll want to do.
Note that this post relates to alcohol delivery in the United States. It does not consider alcohol delivery in other countries.
Does DoorDash Deliver Alcohol?
DoorDash does deliver alcohol, although whether they deliver alcohol in your city will depend on state and local laws. Assuming alcohol delivery is permitted in your city, you’ll likely be able to order alcohol via DoorDash.
The availability of alcohol delivery will also depend on whether stores in your area have signed up for alcohol delivery with DoorDash. Many liquor stores have signed up for this, but it likely is only going to be a select few stores. In other words, even though you might want to order from a certain liquor store, they might not be signed up with DoorDash.
Finally, there are important restrictions on who can order alcohol. Most importantly, you must be 21 years old to order alcohol using the DoorDash app. DoorDash drivers are required to check customer ID before delivering alcohol and the ID is scanned and verified by the DoorDash app. If you are not 21, the Dasher will not be able to deliver your order.
What You Need To Do As A Customer If You Order Alcohol
There are other nuances that you need to consider if you’re a customer ordering alcohol with DoorDash. Here are the most important things to know.
First, you must be at least 21 years old to order alcohol with DoorDash. This is self-explanatory, as every state in the US requires you to be 21 to buy alcohol (some states do have exceptions regarding religious activities, lawful employment, or parental consent, but none of these will apply to DoorDash alcohol delivery). One thing to note is that DoorDash doesn’t necessarily require the recipient of the order to provide ID. It only requires that someone at the delivery address be over 21 years old and provide ID.
Second, you must provide your ID to the Dasher to scan with the DoorDash app. DoorDash runs the ID through its system. The order cannot be completed without a valid ID. Dashers are also instructed to confirm that the ID matches the person handing it to them. In practical turns, what this means is you cannot ask to have your order left at your door and you or someone in your household will have to provide valid ID for the order to be delivered.
Finally, if you are ordering alcohol, you cannot appear to be intoxicated when your Dasher arrives. Dashers are instructed not to deliver alcohol if the customer appears to be intoxicated. If you are intoxicated, your Dasher may be unable to complete the delivery.
Delivering Alcohol As A Dasher
As a Dasher, delivering alcohol comes with some important requirements. Here’s what you need to know if you are delivering alcohol with DoorDash.
First, you must be 21 years old to deliver alcohol. DoorDash presumably would know how old you are and would not send alcohol deliveries to you if you’re under 21, but I’m not sure if they actually keep track of that. However, liquor stores are instructed to check IDs for Dashers that are delivering alcohol, although in practice, not all stores will check your ID (for me, I get my ID checked by the liquor store maybe 50% of the time – perhaps less even).
Second, you’ll need to qualify for alcohol delivery via the Dasher app. This includes watching some videos, reviewing written materials, and taking a short quiz. I did this a long time ago, so I’m not sure what it looks like today, but as long as you review everything, this shouldn’t be a problem.
Third, as a Dasher, you’ll need to verify the customer’s age and scan their ID using the Dasher app. Alcohol deliveries cannot be left unattended and there is no “leave at door” option for alcohol deliveries. In addition, you cannot give alcohol orders to customers that appear intoxicated. When it comes to verifying the ID, the only thing you need to do is make sure that the ID matches the customer. The Dasher app will scan it and confirm that it’s real (Dashers are not responsible for making sure IDs are real).
Finally, if you’d prefer not to deliver alcohol, DoorDash makes it clear that is okay and that not delivering alcohol will not impact your ability to receive other delivery orders. On the DoorDash website, they state the following:
Alcohol delivery is optional, and opting out of this type of delivery will not impact your ability to receive other orders from restaurants, grocery stores, retail partners, and more. If you wish to opt out of this type of delivery, please submit your request to support@doordash.com. In addition, if you ever receive an alcohol order you do not wish to perform, you have the option to decline the order before accepting it or cancel the order before picking it up from the merchant.
Source: Delivering Alcohol Guidelines
Overall, following all of the DoorDash guidelines regarding alcohol deliveries is very important, as failure to do so could open you up to criminal liability regarding delivering alcohol to minors. The Dasher app will walk you through exactly what you need to do when delivering alcohol, so as long as you follow all of the steps when you’re delivering, you should be fine.
Final Thoughts
I find alcohol delivery to be easy. The orders are almost always ready for me when I arrive and I’m usually able to complete them quickly. They usually pay well too – I find that customers generally tip well on alcohol delivery orders and the base pay can often be good too.
The main risk of doing alcohol delivery is that it has the potential to take a lot of time if the customer isn’t at the address, doesn’t provide ID, appears intoxicated, or if any other hiccup occurs. If something happens that doesn’t let you complete the delivery, you’ll be forced to return the order to the liquor store, which will cause you to waste a lot of time. I’ve fortunately never had this happen to me, but the more you deliver alcohol, the more chances you have of running into an order like this.
In sum, DoorDash does deliver alcohol. It requires more interaction than your typical order since customers need to provide ID and Dashers need to verify ID. But overall, it’s not too difficult and for Dashers, alcohol delivery can pay well and be simple and easy.
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