Just Eat has revolutionised the fast food industry, allowing hungry customers to survey all of the restaurants in their local area and choose the right food for them.
With comprehensive ordering systems, and bright, colourful menus, Just Eat has made an already easy task even simpler, making food collection, delivery, and ordering all the more simple for busy people on the go.
But can you pay cash on Just Eat?
Cash payment is available for in-person collection orders (where you order on the app and pick up in-store) however most deliveries need to be paid for in the app. Some restaurants still allow cash payments for deliveries, however, you must be using a signed-in account to avail of this service. Guest accounts can not pay by cash under any circumstances.
But how exactly did Just Eat come about, and what options do customers have regarding payment?
History
Contents
What might surprise a lot of people, is that Just Eat isn’t strictly a modern phenomenon, having been founded in 2000 in Denmark, where it has proved popular and effective ever since.
Started by five Danish entrepreneurs – including Jesper Buch – Just Eat began life as Just Eat PLC in Kolding, Denmark, where it had only 15 employees following its 2001 launch.
However, things changed in 2005, when technology investor Bo Bendtsen bought out four of the founders, excluding Jesper Buch, and relocated the company to the United Kingdom, where it remains based to this day.
Following international expansion, starting with the Netherlands in 2007, Just Eat now operates in the North American, French, Spanish, Swiss, Italian, and Irish markets, and as of 2022 boasted a net income of 1,044 million euros.
Just Eat: The Services
Just Eat offers customers several ways of ordering and receiving their food, as well as a plethora of local businesses and famous brands to choose from.
Global Brands
With the international success of the company, Just Eat has secured contracts with McDonald’s, KFC, Burger King, Papa John’s, Gregg’s, Subway, and countless others, offering customers ample choices to find the perfect food for their specific occasions.
Whilst these are dependent on customer location, and the distance from the restaurants in question, there has never before been so much choice at the touch of a button.
Local Favourites
Of course, the main function of Just Eat is to collate all of the local businesses (or the ones who have signed up) into one place, using the customer’s area code to bring them all together.
This means that wherever you happen to be, you have access to local menus, reviews from previous customers, and star ratings to see what exactly the restaurants are like before you make your decision.
Cuisines
Just Eat also allows customers to sort their searches based on what type of cuisine they are looking for.
From pizza, hamburgers, fried chicken, Indian food, Chinese food, and even sushi, there are countless different choices based on where you live and the restaurants nearby.
Just Eat: Payment Methods
Of course, one thing that Just Eat has made simpler is paying for food. However, there are different options depending on how you want to do this.
Online Delivery
When ordering online and specifying the delivery option, the only way you can pay for your food is through the online Just Eat website, which requires card payments over the computer or smartphone.
In-Person Collection
If you have placed an online order and wish to collect it in person, then you are more than able to pay with a card, or indeed physical cash if that is your preferred method.
Of course, this is only really beneficial for restaurants that are on your doorstep, however, due to the nature of the area code system, you would never have to travel more than a couple of miles.
Gift Cards
With the online payment system, there is also the option to add Just Eat prepaid gift cards to your personal account, allowing you to use them to pay for your food.
These can be purchased from most supermarkets, or from the Just Eat website itself, and can be given as gifts for family members or friends who like nothing better than to try some new and exciting grub at the click of a button.
Just Eat: The Benefits
Of course, there are countless benefits to this business model.
Simplicity
The main benefit is the simplicity of the whole thing – allowing you to browse, order, pay, and then receive your food, all through one single app, which can be used on a computer or smartphone.
Gone are the days of driving around, taking a chance on an unfamiliar spot, or rooting around in drawers for the same old menus.
Choice
As we previously mentioned, there has never been so much choice available to customers, and whereas we once might have been limited to the same old dish we always have from the local spot, there are now countless types of food we can try.
The only thing really stopping us is our imagination.
Consumer Power
Of course, an important thing to acknowledge is the power Just Eat has given to the consumer.
Getting the food we want has never been easier, and now more than ever, we are protected from local businesses, who until recently, couldn’t really be held accountable.
Just Eat combines local flavour with the ability to take matters further should the situation turn bad.
This could be for a customer complaint, or for a refund if the food was really bad, and goes some way to ensuring big company standards of accountability are brought all the way down to street-level businesses.
Reviews
You also have access to reviews, ratings, and information on the businesses you can choose, meaning you won’t get caught out by bad restaurants and questionable dishes.
Final Thoughts
And there we have it, everything you need to know about Just Eat, their business model, and the accepted payment methods.
Just Eat offers access to a great range of local and international restaurants and brands, allowing you to eat to your heart’s content with minimal cost and, more importantly, minimal stress.
The only thing left to do is try it out for yourself! Is anyone else hungry?
