In a significant shift to its platform policies, Meituan has quietly launched a pilot program allowing food delivery riders to rate and block problematic customers. Currently active in seven cities—including Jinjiang (Fujian) and Shaoxing (Zhejiang)—the feature aims to address long-standing tensions between riders and users by introducing a tool for riders to protect themselves from abusive behavior.
How It Works
Within 48 hours of completing an order, riders can anonymously review customers on the order page. If they face insults, threats, or intimidation, they can immediately block the user by selecting “Don’t deliver to this customer again”on the review page. Alternatively, riders can navigate to Order Settings → Order Tools → Block Customerin the app to submit a formal request, attaching evidence (e.g., screenshots of harassment) for Meituan’s review. Approved blocks last 365 days, and riders may block up to two customers simultaneously.
Meituan confirmed the feature’s rollout to Jiemian Newson October 13, stating it would expand gradually without a fixed timeline. The update follows years of media reports highlighting power imbalances: riders often endured unfair treatment—such as malicious low ratings for minor delays or baseless delivery failure reports—while customers held unilateral control via rating and blocking tools. Previously, customers could block riders by accessing the rider’s profile from their order history and tapping “Block”in the top-right corner.
Now, Meituan’s pilot rebalances the system, granting riders their first formal mechanism to “push back” against abusive customers.
