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Delivery fees in HCM City have sharply increased as tighter social distancing measures are being imposed in the city.
A resident in Tan Binh District said she ordered to transport a cake from Ahamove from Tan Binh District to District 2 and District 7. The delivery fee was VDN250,000 (USD11), much higher than the usual VND100,000 to VND120,000 fees.
Nguyen Thi Dung from District 3 said she ordered meat and vegetables to her sister in Binh Thanh District for VND70,000 (USD3) while the fee used to be only VND40,000.
“The charge is more than half the cost of the food. Delivery fees have risen so fast,” she said.
Bui Trong Hieu from District 10 said he had to open the package to show the shipper.
“I sent fish to my relatives in District 5. I already packed everything tight when the shipper said I had to show him what was inside,” Hieu said. “He said he had to check if essential products are inside or else he wouldn’t deliver it so I took off the tape and packed it again.”
The delivery apps use their own algorithm to calculate the delivery fees. According to the firms, the fees were calculated based on demand and the availability of shippers.
Gojek Vietnam said after social distancing rules were tightened, they only deliver essential products which are mostly food. As citizens stay home, the orders increased while many of their shippers are in the lockdown areas or quarantined so they couldn’t meet demand.
“Most shippers who are still working have a very difficult background and they are willing to risk their health to work to support their families,” said the representative of Gojek Vietnam.
Grab Vietnam also said their delivery services only operate from 6 am to 5 pm after HCM City imposed a curfew. Their shippers can refuse to deliver non-essential products.
This article was originally published in Dtinews