Uber Eats allowed deliveries from fake restaurant man set up in front garden

Inspectors 'almost speechless with horror' upon discovering firm was collecting from man cooking on filthy barbecue in front of home

He was allowed to sell on the app despite admitting he had no food hygiene rating (Reuters)

Uber Eats agreed to do deliveries from a man cooking burgers at a fake restaurant he set up in his front garden, with no safety, hygiene or identity checks.

The supposed eatery, Best Burger Corp, was created by a BBC reporter to see how easily he could trade on the online platform.

Two days after registering and admitting he did not have a food hygiene rating from the local council, while promising he would get one “soon”, he was given permission to sell food on the app.

He went on to cook on a filthy barbecue in his front garden, where the delivery was picked up by an Uber Eats delivery partner.

Chair of the Food Standards Agency (FSA) Heather Hancock told the reporter she was “almost speechless with horror” over the sting – adding it was “horrifying” that the delivery man had seen restaurant and still taken the food.

The company responded by saying it would tighten up restrictions to ensure any restaurants available on the app have been approved by the FSA.

An Uber Eats spokeswoman said: "We are deeply concerned by this breach of our food safety policy.

"We have taken immediate action to update our safety sign-up requirements and begun an additional audit of all restaurants on the app.

“It is unacceptable that a restaurant that did not meet our requirements was able to use the platform, and shows further improvements are required.

"We have informed the FSA and local authorities about this incident, and we are working hard to ensure this does not happen again."