"Ordered the Wrong Large Size..." Self-Employed Frustrated Over Free Size-Up 'Tips'

'SNS Shares "Free Size-Up" Method
Cancel Order to Reorder Larger Portion as Small
"Abuse of Goodwill" Causes Distress Among Small Business Owners'

On social networking services (SNS), useful tips for getting free size upgrades are being actively shared. In response, self-employed business owners have expressed resentment, saying these tips exploit goodwill.

Image unrelated to the article content.
Photo by Getty Images

On the 20th, a post titled "New Scam: Delivery Beggars" was uploaded on an online community. This directly criticized the recently trending "how to get a free size upgrade" method on SNS. The author, A, who is self-employed, began by saying, "(These customers) tend to order large or extra-large, or double portions, along with side orders like rice bowls or drinks."

A said, "(These customers) call the store about 10 minutes after ordering and say things like 'I want to cancel the rice bowl and reorder,' or 'I want to cancel the drink and reorder,'" and claimed, "If the store cancels the order, about 5 minutes later they reorder a small or medium portion instead of the originally ordered double portion." He continued, "This behavior exploits the fact that the food is already being prepared in a big size, aiming for a free size upgrade," and criticized, "Afterward, these customers do not answer any calls from the store and enjoy the delivered food." He added, "I am sharing this new scam that almost happened to me today with a real-time delivery beggar. All store owners, please be cautious."

Customer requests disclosed by Mr. A. (Above) The first request and (below) the reorder request appear to have changed.
[Photo by Online Community]

A also posted the requests left by the customer at the store. In the photo, the customer says during the first order, "I will participate in the review event," and "I am ordering with all my money. Sorry, but I would appreciate it if you could give me a lot." When canceling and reordering, the customer boldly demands, saying, "Sorry for the cancellation," but also, "I had to leave the bus fare, so I had no choice. I want to ask if the review event is still possible."

Netizens who read the story responded with comments such as, "They really think hard. If it were me, I would make a small portion freshly and deliver it, and the leftovers would be eaten by staff or part-timers," "I wish the world was a place where people lived decently. It seems that troublemakers are evolving," "From now on, I will check reorders before canceling," "Exploiting goodwill is really mean," and "If you don't have money, you shouldn't eat."

Meanwhile, a similar method was shared on SNS in January last year, drawing criticism from self-employed business owners. B, a self-employed person, claimed, "A takeout order came in a little while ago, but about 10 minutes later, they called and said it was a delivery but mistakenly ordered takeout," and said, "I kindly told them I would cancel the order so they could reorder for delivery, but they said no because it was 3,000 won more expensive. Then they said, 'Since you already started cooking, you can't throw it away, so just send it to me,'"

In response, netizens expressed negative reactions such as, "I hope delivery apps create lists to block troublesome orders," "If you don't allow cancellations, they might do review terrorism. From now on, cancel cleanly and refuse orders," and "Once you send it once, they think it's normal."