A young man who ordered a takeaway on New Year's Eve from Uber Eats has been left outraged after it never arrived - and claims it was in fact a scam.
Kyle Fairhurst, who lives in Chorley, Lancashire, believes the restaurant, located 18 miles from his home in Manchester, must be fake and wants the food delivery giant to do more about potential sham eateries on its platform after having to wait weeks to get a refund.
The 18-year-old, who wished not to be pictured, says he was hugely disappointed when his burger and jalapeno bites as part of his £21 order never made it to his home and nothing happened after he complained - but Uber Eats now say they are 'fully investigating' the claims.
Kyle placed the order when he returned home from a night out on New Year's Eve at 5.30am. There were only two options available at that time - one charging £9 for delivery and the other - charging just £1.75 for delivery - which he went for.
He selected two vegetable samosas, jalapeno bites, a double crispy chicken burger, and a Fanta to wash it down.
Kyle, who works as a telecoms engineer, then stayed up for an hour and a half waiting for its arrival before falling asleep at 7am.
"I was really looking forward to this food," Kyle told the Mirror.
"I was proper disappointed, I was gutted and I'm more gutted they didn't acknowledge what had happened.
"When I logged onto Uber Eats only two restaurants said they'd deliver to me.
"One was £9 delivery and the other said £1.95. So I put the order in and it was accepted. Happy days.
"I waited an hour and nothing arrived, nothing arrived in the next hour, at 7am I fell asleep.
"When I woke up Uber said it was delivered, but nothing was there."
Kyle, who lives with his mum, checked his Ring camera, which had no sign of a delivery.
He contacted Uber Eats customer support who he claims said on multiple occasions that a refund was not possible.
They allegedly cited a problem with his account status, which Kyle says is "ridiculous" and claims he has only requested a refund once before when his Subway arrived cold.
"I kept getting the same copy-and-paste message, back and forth. They're stealing my money.
"And now they've started ignoring me."
Kyle did more digging into the restaurant to see if he could get a direct refund from them, however, was shocked to find it was located miles from his home, in a different county.
"I thought no wonder they didn't deliver it," Kyle said.
"I wanted to call them and I searched the address on maps, and it came up as a scam. I couldn't believe it."
Reviews by others on Google also state that the takeaway listed at the address is a scam. There is no contact number available while information on Uber Eats says it is currently waiting for a food hygiene inspection.
After the Mirror approached Uber Eats, Kyle was immediately refunded.
"They need to listen to the customers more. People can say the food never arrived but I've asked for proof from the restaurant themselves and Uber ignored me on that. They've never asked me for that proof," Kyle added.
"There is a massive problem with fake restaurants on the platform so maybe if they have someone check, it would stop this from happening.
"I won't be using Uber again."
A spokesperson from Uber told the Mirror: "We are very sorry for Kyle's experience and we have provided a full refund.
"Uber Eats is committed to providing the best platform for consumers and restaurants alike and we are fully investigating Kyle's complaint".
A spokesperson for Manchester City Council said: "The Council is aware of this business and has received a food business registration. It has been allocated for a food hygiene and standards inspection which will be carried out as a priority."
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