Grubhub’s $24M FTC settlement is finally reaching diners and drivers
- ID
- 13596
- Status
- summarized
- Published
- 13 Aug 2026, 2:34 AM
- Fetched
- 13 Aug 2026, 2:56 AM
- Provider
- TechCrunch
- Category
- technology
- Original URL
- https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/12/grubhubs-24m-ftc-settlement-is-finally-reaching-diners-and-drivers/
- Source URL
- https://techcrunch.com/feed/
Summary
- Score
- 2.5
- Created
- 13 Aug 2026, 2:56 AM
- Tags
- Audience
- saas_startup_founders
What happened
The FTC is distributing $23.8 million to 640,038 Grubhub drivers and customers after a December 2024 lawsuit alleging misleading driver earnings claims, customer account restrictions, and listing ~325,000 restaurants on the platform without consent. Grubhub must now obtain restaurant consent before listing, accurately advertise driver earnings, and give customers a way to challenge account freezes.
Why it matters
For founders building two-sided marketplaces, the consent-before-listing requirement is the concrete lesson: adding businesses to your platform without permission and then refusing removal can trigger regulatory action. If you operate a marketplace in Malaysia or SEA, ensure you have explicit opt-in for merchants and a clear removal process.
Discussion angle
How marketplace platforms in SEA should handle merchant onboarding consent — what counts as explicit opt-in versus scraping public listings, and whether Malaysian regulators could pursue similar claims under existing consumer protection law.