A Doordash customer claims he ordered some cheeseburgers — and got a broken leg on the side.
Now he’s suing the San Francisco tech giant for sending him a delivery worker who, he claims, beat him up in a fit of fury before stealing his cell phone — and his food.
Michael Garcia, a restaurant manager who lives in Astoria, Queens, says he ordered the burgers to be delivered to his home on May 10 because he had gotten home late from his job in Manhattan and didn’t want to leave his apartment.
But his Doordash driver, Barry Smith, refused to bring the food to his door and insisted “you come and get it,” Garcia told The Post in an interview.
At 1:15 a.m., wearing his pajamas and slippers, Garcia approached the driver’s car and — raising his arms in frustration — said “you guys usually come in,” he told The Post. Smith responded, “Do you have a problem?” before getting out of his car with another man — both of whom started throwing punches, he alleged.
“I took multiple blows, kicks — and the final part of the assault was when my ankle was stomped on,” Garcia told The Post from his lawyer’s office in downtown Manhattan.
When Garcia dropped his cell phone, one of the men ordered the other one to “grab that,” before taunting him by saying, “and we’re going to eat your food,” as they sped off, according to Garcia.
A neighbor called the police after Garcia hobbled to the Good Samaritan’s front window, he said. He was taken by ambulance to the hospital , where he learned that his leg was broken in two places.
Garcia was able to identify Smith from photographs the police brought to his apartment the next day, but the other passenger was never identified, according to Garcia’s lawyer, Robert Berkowitz.
Smith was arrested and is being prosecuted by the Queens District Attorney, according to court documents. He is being charged with assault and attempt to cause physical injury along with petit larceny.
Garcia filed his lawsuit last week in New York state court last week, accusing DoorDash of failing to properly vet and supervise its delivery workers.
Garcia says he’s returned to his job, but can only work five or six hours at a time — and has had to take an Uber each way because he can’t navigate the subway with crutches.
“I think about it every day that there is someone out there who may want do more harm to me, who knows where I live and has seen my contacts from my phone,” Garcia said.
Last week, The Post reported on allegations of aggressive behavior among Doordash delivery people, including a March incident caught on video in which a Doordash worker appeared to punch a restaurant employee in the head.
“We are looking at what kind of vetting Doordash does when it hires people,” Berkowitz told The Post. “It’s a question of accountability. Unfortunately what happened to Mr. Garcia has happened before and it’s bound to happen again unless these Internet companies step up and ensure the safety of the patrons.”
An attorney for Smith didn’t respond to requests for comment. Doordash also did not respond.