ive been dashing for about three years now, and for most of that period, i would knock or ring if they didnt specify whether i should or shouldnt. i just figured if they didnt give instructions, there is a good chance that theyre not paying too much attention to the delivery, and a knock or ring would be helpful so the food isnt getting cold outside until they see the notification from DD, or until it gets stolen. a decent bit of customers felt the same, plus i never got a complaint about it. rather, every now and then people would thank me over text, and occasionally tip me more after. just for knocking or ringing.

but on this sub, there was someone asking if they should knock/ring or not, and everyone in the comments said you SHOULDNT unless the customer specifies. i thought "yeah sure you don't wanna wake up a napping baby, or send some labradors into a state of absolute panic. but thats not my responsibility or my fault. i didnt order food to their door, they did. i would rather them be pissed because their dog barked a few times, than them be pissed because their food was stolen before they noticed it was there." and i still kind of stand by that. however, just because customers can be oblivious doesn't mean i shouldnt give them more consideration.

so i switched it up, just to see if anything changes. now i only knock/ring if they specify for me to. experience is the best teacher after all. but to be honest, its made very little difference, as far as i can tell. i have yet to have any complaints about missing or cold orders, ive had no problems whatsoever. maybe most people are just watching me navigate in anticipation, so they know when im there. even if there are some who dont pay attention to that, and their order sat outside for a while, i didnt hear about it.

i guess in most cases, it doesnt matter unless they specify. but ill stick to not knocking or ringing for now, in case ive actually just been pissing off customers for the past 3 years that just never complained for politeness' sake.

i do wish doordash would make it a required field to fill out a "knock/ring or not" option when you choose "leave at the door" because there are zero rules when it comes to this. plus im curious as to what people would choose.

anyways, what do you think?? love to hear peoples input, even if theyre doordashers. jkjk