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Instacart launches in-app safety hub for personal shoppers

ADT-powered ‘get assistance’ button connects delivery workers to emergency services

Russell Redman

May 22, 2020

4 Min Read
Instacart personal shopper-pickup
Instacart's community of personal shoppers has more than tripled, to 500,000, during the COVID-19 crisis, and the online grocery delivery giant is in the process of hiring 250,000 more shoppers.Instacart

Instacart has partnered with security firm ADT to launch a “safety hub” in its app for personal shoppers that puts them in contact with emergency services in times of need.

Along with the safety tool, San Francisco-based Instacart announced other new app features yesterday, including shopper identity verification, updated contactless delivery for alcohol and prescriptions, and perks such as discounts on cell phone coverage and roadside assistance.

The hub makes it easier for shoppers to navigate safety tools, resources, and guidelines available to them in the app, Instacart said. Powered by the Safe by ADT mobile platform, a new “get emergency assistance” button connects shoppers to emergency services if they need aid while picking and delivering online grocery orders and shares data such as GPS location to direct responding personnel.

Besides the emergency button, the hub offers an incident reporting tool that enables shoppers to more easily report an issue that may occur while shopping or making a delivery. Shoppers also can access resources about third-party safety organizations, shopper injury protection and guidelines on shopping and delivering safely.

Instacart said the new in-app safety hub is now available to all shoppers, with features rolling out over the coming weeks.

Related:Rite Aid goes all in with Instacart delivery

Instacart ADT Safety Hub-Instacart Shopper App

The ADT-powered

“Shoppers play an important role, helping deliver customers their groceries and goods during this time of need. The health and safety of the entire shopper community remains a top priority, and it’s critically important we continue to evolve our offerings for shoppers to ensure they have the personal protective equipment and resources they need inside and outside of the aisles to help keep them safe,” Instacart President Nilam Ganenthiran said in a statement. “These new features, safety tools and resources we’re introducing today will help ensure shoppers have the support they need both during and long after the COVID-19 crisis.”

Boca Raton, Fla.-based ADT said its Safe by ADT solution, once activated in the Instacart Shopper app, allows the online grocery giant’s more than 500,000 personal shoppers to “quickly and discreetly” signal for help anytime they feel unsafe.

In connecting shoppers to emergency services, the tool share incident details such as GPS location, identity and other partner-specified data, such as trip or task details, which ADT noted can be critical when shoppers are unfamiliar with their surroundings or unable to describe their location to a dispatcher. The safety feature also enables emergency services to continually track the shopper, even if they moved after the initial alert.

Related:Instacart aims to add 250,000 more personal shoppers

“The ADT mobile safety solution integrates seamlessly into the Instacart Shopper app, providing peace of mind and safety to on-the-go shoppers and their customers,” commented Leah Page, vice president of mobile security and strategic projects at ADT. “We believe everyone has the right to feel safe, and through this partnership, we’re proud to help protect Instacart’s shopper community.”

And that community has grown by leaps and bounds during the coronavirus pandemic. In late April, Instacart said it aims to hire 250,000 more full-service personal shoppers over the coming months to help meet skyrocketing demand for online grocery delivery. A month earlier, the company announced plans to hire 300,000 new full-service shoppers and met that goal just weeks later, which expanded its shopper community to more than 500,000 people. At the time, Instacart reported that order volume had jumped more than 500% year over year, with the average customer basket size growing 35%.

Before the COVID-19 crisis, Instacart had about 130,000 full-service shoppers and 12,000 in-store shoppers to fulfill online grocery orders for same-day delivery or pickup.

Instacart said it’s also investing in keeping personal shopper accounts secure. The company yesterday introduced shopper ID verification, a new authentication method to help make sure shopper accounts are valid. While shopping or delivering a batch, shoppers will be periodically prompted to take a photo of themselves, which will ensure that the person using the account is the same individual whose photo is on file. Instacart  said this tool will prevent shopper accounts from being used by unauthorized people, in turn enhancing security for the entire Instacart platform.

In upcoming weeks, Instacart also aims to roll out a new contactless delivery option that will no longer require personal shoppers to scan a customer’s ID upon delivering alcohol or prescriptions. The shopper can simply review the ID and signature that customers scan from their own device and then verify that the ID matches, while standing apart at a safe, six-foot distance, the company said.

Instacart added that it’s continuing to invest in perks that benefit personal shoppers beyond the pandemic, including new partnerships with Sprint, CarAdvise and Good Sam. The new offerings will provide shoppers with savings on cell phone coverage, car maintenance and roadside assistance. The company said each of the new perks is being offered based on direct feedback from Instacart shoppers and will help them save money on some of their most frequent expenses.

Over the last few months, Instacart has introduced more than 15 new product features, as well as new health guidelines, contactless delivery options, shopper bonuses, and sick leave policies, as well as pay for those affected by COVID-19.

About the Author

Russell Redman

Senior Editor
Supermarket News

Russell Redman has served as senior editor at Supermarket News since April 2018, his second tour with the publication. In his current role, he handles daily news coverage for the SN website and contributes news and features for the print magazine, as well as participates in special projects, podcasts and webinars and attends industry events. Russ joined SN from Racher Press Inc.’s Chain Drug Review and Mass Market Retailers magazines, where he served as desk/online editor for more than nine years, covering the food/drug/mass retail sector. 

Russell Redman’s more than 30 years of experience in journalism span a range of editorial manager, editor, reporter/writer and digital roles at a variety of publications and websites covering a breadth of industries, including retailing, pharmacy/health care, IT, digital home, financial technology, financial services, real estate/commercial property, pro audio/video and film. He started his career in 1989 as a local news reporter and editor, covering community news and politics in Long Island, N.Y. His background also includes an earlier stint at Supermarket News as center store editor and then financial editor in the mid-1990s. Russ holds a B.A. in journalism (minor in political science) from Hofstra University, where he also earned a certificate in digital/social media marketing in November 2016.

Russell Redman’s experience:

Supermarket News - Informa
Senior Editor 
April 2018 - present

Chain Drug Review/Mass Market Retailers - Racher Press
Desk/Online Editor 
Sept. 2008 - March 2018

CRN magazine - CMP Media
Managing Editor
May 2000 - June 2007

Bank Systems & Technology - Miller Freeman
Executive Editor/Managing Editor
Dec. 1996 - May 2000

Supermarket News - Fairchild Publications
Financial Editor/Associate Editor
April 1995 - Dec. 1996 

Shopping Centers Today Magazine - ICSC 
Desk Editor/Assistant Editor
Dec. 1992 - April 1995

Testa Communications
Assistant Editor/Contributing Editor (Music & Sound Retailer, Post, Producer, Sound & Communications and DJ Times magazines)
Jan. 1991 - Dec. 1992 

American Banker/Bond Buyer
Copy Editor
Oct. 1990 - Jan. 1991 

This Week newspaper - Chanry Communications
Reporter/Editor
May 1989 - July 1990

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