Phuket rider says hotel staff eat food delivered to foreign guest at reception

A food delivery rider in Phuket lodged a police complaint, claiming hotel staff stole and consumed the fried chicken he had delivered for a foreign guest. The unnamed rider recounted his story on Phuket Times' Facebook page on October 7. He did not reveal the hotel's name. According to the rider, he accepted an order for fried chicken and left it at the hotel's reception counter.

Delivery riders are typically instructed to drop off food at reception rather than delivering it directly to guests' rooms. After completing his deliveries, the rider returned to collect his next order. However, he later received a complaint from the customer via the delivery app's reporting system, stating that the food had not been received.

This led to a drop in his rating on the platform and the order being marked as missing. The rider then discovered that the hotel staff had taken the food and eaten it. He reported the incident to the police, citing concerns that complaints against delivery workers could negatively impact their records and limit their available work.

The rider, who has been working as a delivery driver for years, said he had never encountered such a situation before. As of now, there has been no public update on the police investigation, and the hotel has not made a statement regarding the incident. This case is part of a series of reported food theft incidents in Thailand, including a Thai teacher in Tak province who was caught stealing ingredients from a grocery store in November, and a man in Udon Thani arrested for attempting to steal roasted pork from a noodle shop in February.

Another man was arrested in December 2024 for repeatedly shoplifting from grocery shops in Bangkok's Huai Khwang area, causing issues for local businesses.