"Feeling Upset After 'Delivery Completed' Text, Requests Refund... What Kind of Life Have They Lived?"

Smiling emoji appears as '?' due to mobile phone compatibility issue
"Enjoy your meal and please order again?" displayed

A self-employed business owner lamented an unfair situation after receiving a food refund request from a customer due to a kind 'Delivery Completed' message sent by the delivery driver.

The photo is not related to the specific content of the article. A delivery driver is quickly riding a motorcycle in downtown Seoul. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonoam@

On June 10, a post titled "Refund requested because of an emoticon that made me upset" was uploaded on the self-employed community 'Apeunikka Sajangida' (Because It Hurts, I'm a Boss). The author, Mr. A, shared, "After coming home from work, I found a 1-star review on the delivery app," and posted a screenshot of the customer's review.

The customer, Mr. B, who left the review wrote, "I received a strange message; was it sent from ○○○? Please accept the return. I will pay the delivery fee. Please pick it up immediately and refund me." Not understanding the review, Mr. A contacted the delivery agency and learned the full story. Upon checking, it was found that the delivery driver had included a smiling emoticon in the message sent to Mr. B, but because it was incompatible with Mr. B's phone, the emoticon was transmitted as a question mark ('?') instead of the image.

As a result, the message Mr. B received read: "Hello. This is the delivery driver. The food you ordered has been delivered to the door (or requested location). Thank you. Please enjoy your meal and order again?"

Mr. A explained, "I told Mr. B that the driver and the customer were using Samsung Galaxy and Apple iPhone respectively, so the emoticon was not compatible and turned into a question mark. However, Mr. B demanded a refund, saying, 'Are you mocking me? Is this a threat? I feel bad.'" He added, "The agency owner also said that while talking to Mr. B, communication broke down so badly that their hands and feet trembled. I wonder what kind of life someone lives to be so shaken by a single question mark that they can't even eat." He expressed his frustration, saying, "Business is slow these days, and now we have to soothe and appease every individual's delicate feelings."

He continued, "The agency owner also notified the drivers that such incidents could happen because of emoticons," and said, "That phrase was not originally set by the company but was created by the driver himself to make the customer feel good. But since Mr. B insisted he was upset, communication was impossible, so we ended up giving the refund."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.