What happens to a restaurant’s delivery app accounts when it is sold?

Begin by listing every app the restaurant sells through, then ask the seller to show who is named on each account, which email address and phone number receive the orders, and where the payouts go. A seller who set accounts up under a personal email or a former partner’s name may not be able to hand them over cleanly. Find that out while you can still adjust the deal.

Next, ask whether each platform will transfer the listing, or whether you will need to open your own account and rebuild the menu, photos and ratings. Contact the platforms directly if the seller is willing to introduce you, and ask what happens to any money owed to or by the restaurant for past orders. Refunds and disputes for orders before closing should be assigned to the seller in the agreement.

Look at the commission statements too. They show how much of the sales come through apps and what that channel costs, which matters to your financial picture. If delivery is a large part of sales, make the transfer of accounts a condition of closing rather than a promise to sort out later.

Key takeaways

• Confirm whose name, email and bank account sit behind every delivery listing.
• Contact each platform to learn whether the account moves or must be reopened.
• Make account transfer, and responsibility for past refunds, part of the written agreement.