I used to be sexually assaulted by supply rider bringing me my Deliveroo – however the app had no particulars for monster who attacked me

A woman has described how she was sexually assaulted by a delivery driver bringing her a Deliveroo – but says the app had no information on the monster who attacked her.

The woman, who MailOnline is calling Mary, from Gloucestershire, says the rider forced entry to her home, sexually assaulted her and fled the scene.

But despite the rider giving a name as he arrived at her building, neither the app or restaurant had a record of an employee of that name.

She fears the driver was able to take advantage of a loophole in the delivery firm’s policies to remain unidentifiable.

Deliveroo partners with some restaurants to allow them to use their own delivery drivers to drop off orders – meaning they know nothing about the drivers they are sending to people’s homes. 

The firm had no information about Mary’s attacker, not even a name. And when she reported the assault to police, the name he had given her matched none of the restaurant’s staff. Deliveroo has suspended the restaurant from its app. 

Mary told MailOnline that the incident this summer began when her order from Deliveroo arrived.

She said she buzzed the rider inside her building as usual and opened her flat door to collect it.

Mary described how the man who appeared on her doorstep acted ‘weirdly’ from the off, forcing his way inside her flat – where she lives alone – and grabbing her in for a hug.

‘It was weird, but it took me so much by surprise I just laughed it off and thanked him for my delivery,’ she said.

But instead of letting her go, the rider then spun her around and began taking off her clothes.

She said: ‘I reacted – I turned around and said to him ‘What the f*** are you doing’.’

Mary said the rider then forced her to the floor and sexually assaulted her, before ‘laughing’ and leaving the building.

She reported the assault to Gloucestershire Police and Deliveroo, but was left frustrated after neither the delivery firm or the restaurant were able to provide any personal details about the man who had shown up at her door.

Mary said: ‘I called the police and they took swabs from my mouth and my clothes too in the hope of a DNA match, but there was no way to match his details with them.

‘I reported it to Deliveroo and I got told that this person who delivered my food was hired by the restaurant so they didn’t have his information. 

‘Obviously the police went to the restaurant and they claimed no-one by this name they had given even worked for them.

‘He basically didn’t exist.’

Police officers eventually tracked down a 24-year-old suspect who was interviewed, but no charges were brought against him due to a lack of evidence and the case was closed.

Mary was not informed by any officer that the suspect had been identified or interviewed. She only found out after MailOnline contacted the force for comment, and said she felt ‘disgusted’ by the revelation. 

Mary has been left traumatised by her ordeal and is in therapy, and now struggles to speak to strangers.

Her case also raised serious concerns about Deliveroo’s customer service, with the company admitting communication with Mary was ‘completely unacceptable’.

Since being contacted, the firm has initiated urgent training for employees which they say will be completed by the end of the year. 

After approaching MailOnline, Mary tried to access her old conversation with Deliveroo so she could hand it over to police officers.

The initial response from the app’s live chat saw a member of staff tell Mary: ‘We take complaints of this nature very seriously’. 

She was then asked to wait while her query was passed to a different team.

Ten minutes later at 11:50am another employee entered the chat and asked what restaurant she had ordered from.

Mary did not see the message immediately, and just two minutes later at 11:52 am the employee sent another message, which read: ‘As we’ve not heard from you for a few minutes now, I’m going to end the chat.’

Mary did see this notification on her phone and logged in immediately, before sending a message that said: ‘Excuse me?’

The employee then left the chat.

After MailOnline approached Deliveroo about the incident, a spokesperson said its conversation with Mary was ‘completely unacceptable’ and acknowledged she ‘did not receive appropriate support from our customer care team.’ 

They added that since MailOnline got in touch the company has ‘implemented new guidance and training for our customer care agents’ in dealing with sensitive issues and it hopes all staff will receiving the training by the end of the month.

Mary told MailOnline that before being assaulted she had previously had uncomfortable reactions with delivery drivers, who she said had tried to invite themselves into her flat to ‘watch TV’.

She said: ‘I don’t use them anymore at all. It’s actually terrifying to not even be able to trust any delivery drivers.’

It comes after MailOnline revealed how delivery firms such as Uber Eats are targeted by account holders looking to make quick cash by renting out their profiles to strangers – including illegal immigrants and people with criminal records. 

A spokesperson for Gloucestershire Constabulary said: ‘Police received a report of a man who had sexually assaulted a woman in Gloucester on 10 May 2024.

‘Officers attended the initial report within one hour of the call being made and forensic evidence was taken. The victim was also signposted towards organisations which could provide her with the appropriate support.

‘Following an investigation, a 24-year-old man was voluntarily interviewed in connection with the incident. Due to insufficient evidence, he was released with no further action.

‘Should the victim wish, the case can be reopened and reinvestigated.

‘We understand the trauma that a sexual assault can have on a victim and we are committed to tackling all male predatory behaviour.

‘We would encourage anyone who has been sexually assaulted to come forward. We will listen, you will be believed and we are dedicated to ensuring sexual offenders, and those who pose a risk to people, are held accountable for their actions.

‘If someone has sexually assaulted you, help is available. Police have specially trained officers who can provide support and investigate these type of offences.

‘Call 999 in an emergency, report by calling 101 or online here: Rape, sexual assault or another sexual offence | Police.uk (www.police.uk).’

A spokesperson for Deliveroo said: ‘This was a horrendous and shocking incident and our thoughts are with the victim. 

‘The safety of our customers is a top priority and we have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to incidents of this nature. 

‘In this instance, the order was not fulfilled by a Deliveroo rider but by a rider who worked directly for the restaurant. We cooperated with the police investigation and have suspended the restaurant from the Deliveroo app.

‘We are sincerely sorry that the customer did not receive appropriate support from our customer care team. This was unacceptable and we have since implemented new guidance and training for our customer care agents.’