Grubhub Has to Pay Back Over 600,000 Customers. Here's What Happened.
The Federal Trade Commission — a government agency that protects consumers — announced on August 12, 2026 that it is sending more than $23.8 million to 640,038 people who were harmed by Grubhub's misleading practices. Most people will get a check in the mail. Some will receive money through PayPal (FTC).
The payments come from a lawsuit the FTC and the state of Illinois filed against Grubhub in December 2024. Grubhub agreed to pay $25 million to settle the case. The $23.8 million now going out is the part set aside for customer refunds (TechCrunch).
The FTC said Grubhub misled people about delivery costs and locked some customers out of their accounts, including any money held in them (CNBC). The complaint also said the company exaggerated how much drivers could earn.
One allegation stood out. The FTC said Grubhub listed as many as 325,000 restaurants on its app that had never agreed to be there. This made the platform look much bigger than it really was. When restaurants asked to be taken off, Grubhub sometimes said no and instead tried to get them to sign paid partnerships (TechCrunch).
The settlement requires Grubhub to change several things. The company has to be more honest about how much drivers can earn, give customers a way to appeal account lockouts that block their money, and ask a restaurant for permission before listing it. Grubhub also agreed to make delivery costs clearer for diners (Grubhub).
A separate but related case wrapped up just before this announcement. In July 2026, a federal judge approved a nearly $25 million settlement for about 60,000 Grubhub delivery drivers in California (TechCrunch).
Between the two cases, Grubhub has faced about $50 million in costs across federal and state actions in under two years. The refunds now going out reach more than 640,000 people.
The broader context here is about trust. Think of it like a phone directory that lists businesses without asking them first. If a restaurant never agreed to be on Grubhub, every order placed through that listing is built on a false starting point. For companies that run apps connecting customers and businesses, this settlement sends the message that listing a business without its permission can lead to legal trouble, not just bad press.
The rule about account lockouts matters too. If a food delivery app can freeze your account and hold your money with no way to fight back, that is a serious problem. The FTC's requirement that Grubhub give people a way to challenge these lockouts could become a standard other apps have to follow.
For the 640,038 people getting payments, the result is simple: money arriving in the mail or through PayPal in the coming weeks. For anyone running a similar app, the settlement is a clear list of practices the government considers unacceptable.
