McDonald's Queanbeyan — Restaurant in New South Wales

There is a new kind of theft that’s quietly taking place in our everyday lives. It doesn’t happen in dark alleys or with stolen wallets. It happens right on our phones, camouflaged behind polished user interfaces and corporate convenience. And it’s happening with Uber Eats, specifically through repeated interactions with McDonald’s in Queanbeyan, Australia. What I’ve experienced and what many others likely have without a voice to raise….is a pattern of systemic indifference that allows two companies to benefit financially from incomplete orders while the consumer is left voiceless, unsupported, and frankly, robbed.

What is deeply disturbing is how deliberately opaque the complaint and escalation process is within Uber Eats. There is no meaningful way to contact a human representative. No one reviews your evidence in good faith. It’s entirely algorithmic, automated denials, cold rejections, and no recourse. They know most people won’t follow up. They know the cost of a $7 item isn’t worth hours of chasing. And they’ve built their policies around this reality. The game is rigged. And while they may not be stealing in the conventional sense, they are profiting from a dishonest transaction model that directly harms the customer. That is not a minor policy oversight. That is a business strategy.

McDonald’s Queanbeyan must also be held accountable. These are not small discrepancies. These are staple items, clearly part of the meal, clearly listed on the receipt, and clearly absent. And it’s not a one-off. When a restaurant partner like this continues to send out incomplete orders, they are fully aware of what they are doing. There’s no excuse for such a repeated pattern of failure, and yet they benefit. Every missing item that goes unrefunded means more profit for them. It is hard not to conclude that the restaurant has learned it can act with impunity, because Uber Eats will not penalise them, and the customer is locked in a system that doesn’t believe them

Some may argue that this is simply the cost of modern convenience. That these things happen, and we should accept the occasional error as part of the service. But I push back on that entirely. Convenience should not mean compromised ethics. Automation should not mean a lack of accountability. When a company takes your money for a product or service, they are bound to deliver it. When they do not, and when they actively dismiss evidence of their failure, they are not a neutral third party. They are complicit.

At the end of the day, this is not about fast food. It’s about consumer rights. About standing up against a structure that pretends to be customer-centric while quietly enabling a pipeline of profit that relies on you not fighting back. If you’ve had a similar experience, if your money was taken and your order wasn’t fulfilled, don’t let it slide. Document everything. Share your story. Make it visible. Because only when these practices are exposed for what they are…a soft form of corporate theft….will the pressure mount for...

Thursday night (6/12/24) was a busy night at this place to be sure, but it was handled atrociously and whoever was the manager should be sacked.

When we go to McDonald's, we go there because we're in a hurry. Last night was no exception and we went there at 8pm on our way through to a shop where we had to pick something up by 9. We ordered just ahead of a busload of unruly children (probably hungry) but even when we got there the milling around the counter was severe.

After 30 mins, I went to the counter to see what the problem was. All I got told was that lots of customers had been waiting 30 minutes. Why "our shift isn't incompetent, it's grossly incompetent" was a valid answer I'll never know, but I digress.

In the end, I left my wife there, drove over to pick up our package, and came back, with her still waiting. I went back to the front counter, where there were over 20 burgers going stale in the staging hopper, nearly that many pouches of chips going limp under a heat lamp, at least a dozen drinks going warm on a bench, four people standing around the burger hopper chatting and chuckling while more than 50 people (including around 35 under managed children who were getting boisterous due to a sugar low) were milling around the takeaway counter.

I demanded a refund, and admittedly got it after some phaffing around by the boy behind the counter, who slammed the drawer shut afterwards because he was being told his service wasn't good enough.

Sure - undermanaged children didn't help the mood of people waiting. Sure - it was a busy night. But there was heaps of food lying about and no-one was actually serving it. There didn't seem to be a manager about and no-one was managing the situation, or even letting people know what was going on.

The sad thing is that on other occasions, the food, service and speed have been pretty good there. I don't know what happened last night but it looked to me like someone was deliberately sabotaging the business.

At the end of the day, it's not okay to make me wait an hour at a restaurant, where the food is cooked to order, there is gentle music playing, the environment is quiet and I can talk to my wife about her day in pleasant surroundings. Why on earth would it be okay at a Maccas? There's no excuse for what happened last night and if I was the owner of that business, I'd be taking a long hard look at my hiring practices, especially for...

To Whom It May Concern,

We are long-term regular customers who purchase our morning coffee at McDonald’s Queanbeyan. Unfortunately, our recent experiences have become increasingly unpleasant due to the conduct of a particular manager on site.

This manager consistently displays unprofessional behaviour, appearing visibly angry and frequently raising her voice at staff members in a degrading manner. As customers, this creates a highly uncomfortable environment, making us question whether we even wish to continue visiting. It is disheartening to witness such interactions, especially as we work in professional environments where respect and pride in one’s role are valued.

A specific incident occurred this morning when an item was accidentally missed from our order. Instead of calmly resolving the issue, the manager raised her voice at us as if the mistake was our fault. When we went back through the drive-through to reorder, she responded rudely with “well there you go” and proceeded to throw the food towards us.

This behaviour was not only disrespectful but also entirely unnecessary. We have also noticed that whenever this manager is on the morning shift, there appears to be a shortage of staff, which we suspect may be linked to her attitude and approach. Her conduct seems to directly affect staff morale and overall productivity.

As loyal customers, we find this very discouraging. We would like to continue enjoying our morning coffee at McDonald’s Queanbeyan, but this manager’s behaviour is making it an unpleasant experience. We strongly encourage that her attitude and approach be addressed so both staff and customers are treated with the respect and courtesy they deserve.

Thank you for your time and...