Much to his chagrin, Australian resident Mark Polchleb recently went viral on Tiktok after sharing that he unknowingly yelled at his DoorDash driver as he approached the front door.
Polchleb had not actually been shouting “get away from the door, mate!” to the innocent driver, but rather to his rambunctious dog, who clearly could smell food fast approaching and began barking in anticipation.
Unfortunately, this was lost in translation, and the driver put down the delivery in shame as he slowly backed away before leaving.
Polchleb saw what had happened after reviewing his security camera footage and was instantly dismayed. He told TODAY, “I couldn’t bear the thought of someone thinking I disrespected them for just doing their job!”
“I’ve genuinely lost sleep over this,” he added in a follow-up TikTok.
Others were quick to commiserate in the comments section.
“The way I’m actually shedding tears thinking of how he must have felt disregarded and a nuisance. I’m feeling sick,” wrote one person
“I WOULD LOSE SLEEP FOR DAYSSSSSS,” wrote another.
Of course, finding a way to apologize would be no easy feat. Not long after the delivery is done, customers have no way of contacting their DoorDash driver. But that didn’t stop a determined Polchleb from reaching out on TikTok for help.
And luckily, being viral meant millions of people were ready to spread the word. What could have been a long and arduous process came to fruition in the blink of an eye.
@markp_ #duet with @maroob ♬ original sound – fiona’s gf
“It took only two days to track him down,” Polchleb told TODAY. “His daughter stumbled across my original TikTok after around 7 million views, and I was able to connect with her, and then her dad.”
Polchleb posted a follow-up TikTok showing a sweet reunion with the driver, who we can affectionately call Sami.
@markp_ Replying to @stylands ♬ original sound – Mark Polchleb
In the video we hear Polchleb say, “This afternoon I got to head out and meet with my DoorDasher Sami to say thank you in person and make sure he was happy,” followed by the two sharing a hug.
But wait, there’s more. This story gets an even happier ending.
DoorDash soon heard about the incident and gave Sami “Top Dasher” status for life as well as extra Dasher pay. Then Sami’s daughter Mary set up a GoFundMe so that he could visit his son in France.
Sami wrote on the fundraiser website, “I came to Australia 8 years ago as a refugee and I haven’t seen my son for 10 years. He lives in France, and I have to do some work to book a ticket to see him.”
So far, more than AU$8,000 has been raised, well surpassing the AU$2,000 goal. It looks like this misunderstanding was a blessing in disguise.
Delivery drivers often have to put up with a lot. Rude customers, terrible tips or worse, tip baiting, where a large tip is offered for fast service then taken away, are just some of the unsavory common occurrences. It’s great that Polchleb went out of his way to make sure Sami was treated with kindness and appreciation.