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H 7846Consumer Protection

Commercial Law - General Regulatory Provisions - Third-Party Delivery Systems

Prohibits delivery apps and reservation services from listing or booking for restaurants without a written agreement.

Held for study
Population
Affected
35
Email Legislator
Introduced Feb 27, 2026Committee House Corporations

Plain-English Summary

This legislation updates commercial law to regulate third-party delivery services and reservation platforms. It prohibits delivery services from listing a merchant, using their logo, or accepting orders without a written agreement. It establishes the "Restaurant Reservation Anti-Piracy Act," banning third-party services from selling or arranging reservations without the restaurant's consent. The bill creates a legal process for merchants to sue for unauthorized listings, setting a minimum recovery of $5,000. It also imposes civil penalties payable to the state for violations.

For younger readers

This new law helps restaurants control how they are listed on the internet. Sometimes, websites or apps try to sell food deliveries or table reservations without asking the restaurant first. This law says those apps must have a written promise from the restaurant before they can list them. If an app breaks this rule, they have to pay money to the restaurant and the government. This makes sure that when you order food or book a table, the restaurant actually knows about it.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups
Restaurant OwnersThird-Party Delivery AppsOnline Reservation PlatformsConsumersGig Economy Drivers
Impacted communities
All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

Moderate risk

Low to Moderate. The bill restricts commercial speech by preventing platforms from listing factual information (menus or reservation availability) without consent. Platforms might argue this violates the First Amendment right to aggregate public data. However, courts generally uphold restrictions on commercial speech that is misleading or implies an affiliation where none exists. The state has a strong interest in preventing consumer confusion and protecting the intellectual property of merchants.

Estimated cost
None
Estimated revenue
Amount unknown

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints
For Progressives
  • Protects small, local business owners from predatory practices by large technology corporations that profit from their labor without consent.
  • Prevents consumers from being exploited by "scalping" markets for restaurant reservations, ensuring equitable access to dining.
  • Empowers local merchants to control their own branding and customer relationships, rather than being forced into a gig-economy ecosystem they did not choose.
  • May reduce the discoverability of some small businesses that rely on aggregation platforms to be found by new customers but lack the resources to manage individual contracts.
  • Could negatively impact gig economy workers if delivery volume decreases due to platforms removing non-partnered restaurants.
  • Limits consumer convenience and the free flow of information regarding where food services are available.
For Conservatives
  • Defends the intellectual property and trademark rights of business owners against unauthorized use by third parties.
  • Prevents fraud and misrepresentation in the marketplace, ensuring that services sold to consumers are legitimate and authorized.
  • Establishes clear liability and accountability for businesses that attempt to profit from the assets and labor of others without a contract.
  • Interferes with the free market by dictating how digital platforms can aggregate and display public business information.
  • Creates a litigious environment by incentivizing lawsuits with guaranteed minimum damages, potentially harming the business climate.
  • Represents government overreach into private commerce by regulating how services facilitate transactions between willing buyers and sellers.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 64 additions · 6 deletions

SECTION 1. Sections 6-58-1, 6-58-3 and 6-58-5 of the General Laws in Chapter 6-58 entitled "Third-Party Delivery Systems" are hereby amended to read as follows: 6-58-1. Definitions. As used in this title, unless the context otherwise requires:

(1) "Advertising platform" means any digital, online, mobile, mapping, search, operating- system level, or voice-activated platform that displays merchant information, search results, sponsored listings, or provides order interfaces. (1)(2) “Agreement” means a written contractual agreement between the merchant and the third-party delivery service. (2)(3) “Customer” means the person, business, or other entity that places an order for merchant products through the marketplace. (3)(4) “Likeness” means identifiable symbols attributed and easily identified as belonging to a specific merchant or retailer. (4)(5) “Marketplace” means the third party’s proprietary online communication platform where customers can view and search the menus of merchants and place an order for merchant products via the third party’s website or mobile application for delivery or by the third-party delivery service, or an independent contractor of the third-party delivery service, to the customer. (5)(6) “Merchant” means a food service establishment as set forth in § 21-27-1 or other retail entity.

(7) "Order interface" means any button, hyperlink, embedded feature, or interactive element that allows or invites a consumer to initiate, place or complete an order from a merchant on an advertising platform. (6)(8) “Third-party delivery service” means a company, organization, or entity, outside of the operation of the merchant’s business that facilitates delivery or online ordering services to customers.

(9) "Unauthorized placement" means any appearance, promotion, advertisement, or order interface on an advertising platform by a third-party delivery service of a merchant without an agreement. 6-58-3. Merchant consent.

(a) A third-party delivery service may not take orders and arrange for the delivery of merchant products through the third-party delivery service’s marketplace without obtaining the written consent of the merchant.

(b) No third-party delivery service shall purchase, bid on, display, allow or cause to be displayed any advertisement, sponsored result, or promoted listing, or other unauthorized placement including, but not limited to, using a merchant's name, trademark, service mark, logo, trade name, or likeness on any advertising platform unless expressly authorized by agreement with a merchant. 6-58-5. Enforcement — Penalties.

(a) Any merchant who is subject to an unauthorized placement or other violation of § 6- 58-3, whose likeness was used by the third-party delivery service, or who appears on a third-party delivery service’s marketplace, in violation of this chapter, may bring an action in the superior court of the county in which the merchant or third-party delivery service is found, or in the superior court of the county as is otherwise provided by law, to recover actual damages or five thousand dollars ($5,000), whichever is greater. The court may, in its discretion, and where the conduct involves reckless or callous indifference to statutorily protected rights, award punitive damages and other equitable relief it deems appropriate.

(b) Any third-party delivery service who or that violates this chapter shall pay to the state a civil penalty of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) per violation. Each day a violation occurs shall count as a separate violation.

SECTION 2. Title 6 of the General Laws entitled "COMMERCIAL LAW — GENERAL REGULATORY PROVISIONS" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following chapter: 6-58.1-1. Short title. This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Restaurant Reservation Anti-Piracy Act." 6-58.1-2. Definitions.

(a) As used in this chapter, the following words shall have the following meanings:

(1) "Food service establishment" means any fixed or mobile restaurant, coffee shop, cafeteria, short-order café, luncheonette, grill, tearoom, sandwich shop, soda fountain, tavern, bar, cocktail lounge, night club, roadside stand, industrial feeding establishment, cultural heritage education facility, private, public or nonprofit organization or institution routinely serving food, catering kitchen, commissary or similar place in which food or drink is prepared for sale or for service on the premises or elsewhere, and any other eating or drinking establishment or operation where food is served or provided for the public with or without charge.

(2) "Third-party restaurant reservation service" means a website, mobile application, or other Internet service that:

(i) Offers or arranges for a reservation at a food service establishment for on-premises service;

(ii) Is owned and operated by a person other than the person who owns the food service establishment, or is contractual;

(iii) Does not have a contractual relationship or agreement with the public food service establishment, or its contractual designee, to offer or arrange for a reservation at the food service establishment for on-premises service. A third-party restaurant reservation service does not include a contractual designee of an individual customer which arrange for a personal and nontransferable reservation at a food service establishment at the request of the customer and at no cost to the customer; provided that, the designee shares the individual customer's contact information with the food service establishment, allows the food service establishment to confirm the reservation with the individual customer, and honors requests from the food service establishment to opt out of future reservations created by the designee. 6-58.1-3. Prohibition of third-party restaurant reservation services. A third-party restaurant reservation service shall not list, advertise, promote, facilitate, sell, or otherwise enable a reservation at a food service establishment in this state. 6-58.1-4. Enforcement -- Penalties. Any person who violates, or causes another person to violate, a provision of this chapter or any rules or regulations promulgated by the department of business regulation hereunder shall be subject to a civil penalty of up to one thousand dollars ($1,000) for each violation. Each day that a third-party restaurant reservation service violates this chapter with respect to a food service establishment constitutes a single violation of this chapter. A proceeding to recover any civil penalty or restitution under this chapter may also be brought by the attorney general. All penalties received for violations shall be deposited as general revenue.

SECTION 3. This act shall take effect on January 1, 2027.