Chinese takeout boxes full of food.

Should You Keep Food Delivered To You By Mistake?

NEWS

BY TIM FORSTER

Bags and cups on a porch.
If you often get food delivered, you may receive the wrong order at some point. If you catch it right away, the driver may be able to swap out the wrong delivery for the right one.
Delivery driver on bike.
However, even if you catch it, your order may have been mistakenly handed off to somebody else earlier, and some apps don’t let drivers take back food that's been handed over.
Food delivery apps on phone.
If the delivery person can’t swap your order, you'll need to go through the app's customer service for a refund. You'll usually find this option in the "help" or "support" section.
Woman receiving delivery.
As for the food: If the intended recipient is nearby, you could be extra-nice and take it in person — but otherwise, you can eat it, since it can’t be taken back to the restaurant.
Person pulling a box out of bag.
While you'll likely get free food out of this type of mix-up, it’s not always easy to get the food from your original order, as apps vary on how they handle wrong deliveries.