An Instacart shopper claims that a customer requested a return on alcohol, so the platform requested they “safely dispose” of the product. The shopper took to TikTok to document how they dealt with the situation.
The video comes from creator Kale (@fishermanlarry47), generating more than 1.2 million views and 106,400 likes in just two days since going up on the platform on Sunday.
“This return for the Instacart lady has been a fiasco but I got a free bottle and 15 bucks lolol,” they wrote in the clip’s caption.
Kale also claimed in a text overlay, “They told me I have to send pics of it in the trash can.”
@fishermanlarry47 this return for the instacart lady has been a fiasco but i got a free bottle and 15 bucks lolol
♬ original sound – kale
“Can’t return alcohol for Instacart … so, I have to safely dispose of it,” Kale says in the clip while holding a vodka bottle.
They then reveal, “No, I’m not actually doing that—this is just water. I poured out the vodka into a milk jug … and I’m gonna drink it.”
Commenters had suggestions for how they might deal with this absurd request.
“I would have just took the pic and took it back out,” one person said.
The creator informed them, “I had to show proof of the empty bottle and the liquid in the trash can lmao.”
“That’s wild they tell me I can keep it,” one fellow shopper claimed.
That led Kale to reply, “What????? They specifically said I CANNOT keep it for personal consumption.”
“Instacart makes you return it to the store lol,” another claimed. “It’s a whole process when you agree to work for them.”
Kale replied, “Trust me, i was talking to Instacart customer service for 30 mins.”
Instacart’s page on alcohol delivery doesn’t specifically address Kale’s situation, though it does say, “We can’t deliver alcohol if the customer doesn’t meet all delivery requirements. In these cases, we refund the alcohol and return it to the store. The customer may still be charged delivery fees, bottle deposit fees, or the tip.”
Other commenters shared different customer service horror stories that were only tangentially related.
One remarked, “Reminds me of our $2000 fridge they told us we had to dispose of it ourselves since the water dispenser didn’t work.”
For at least one, though, returns worked out.
“My husband just had to return stuff to Publix bc the lady didn’t want anyone touching her stuff,” someone shared. “He got to keep the perishable stuff.”
The Daily Dot has reached out to Kale via TikTok comment and to Instacart via email.
