Bolt Food runs a compact version of the same model as the larger apps: a customer reports an issue in the app, Bolt refunds, and the cost of issues attributed to the restaurant — missing item, wrong item, food quality — is reflected in the partner's settlement, while courier issues are absorbed by Bolt. Quality reports come with a photo, and the photo settles the claim at the moment it is filed.
Where to see it, where to report it
Orders and their refund status are visible in the Bolt Food partner tools (the partner portal and the restaurant app). On a disputed order you can report a problem or contact partner support directly; support chat is quick to respond in most markets, but the decision on a charge still comes down to what you can show.
Bolt's dispute window is short and enforced. A report raised late is not considered, however good the evidence.
What Bolt's agents act on
Keep the report factual and specific, in this order:
- What you sent, and proof. A pass photo of the sealed bag with the order number, taken before handover.
- What the customer's photo actually shows. Not "the photo is fake" but "the file was last saved by an editing application", "the alleged defect is sharper than the surrounding food", "this packaging is not ours", "the capture time is earlier than the order". The evidence guide has copy-paste phrasing.
- What you want. The charge reversed.
Under 150 words. Attach the pass photo, the customer's original file and your analysis PDF.
Checking the photo first
Download the customer's photo from the partner tools rather than screenshotting it, so its metadata survives. The visual checks in how to tell if a complaint photo is edited take two minutes; FraudBite adds the pixel-level part — a risk score, a heatmap of the regions that do not match the rest of the image, a list of findings — in seconds, as a PDF built to be attached to exactly this kind of report.
A high score is a reason to report with evidence. A low score, together with a pass photo that shows the mistake, is a reason to accept the refund and fix the process; disputing genuine complaints costs you standing with the agents who handle your account.
Reducing disputed refunds on Bolt Food
- Photograph every sealed order with the receipt in frame.
- Confirm items at the pass in the app where the flow allows it.
- Keep a short log of disputed orders by address and outcome; repeat patterns are what a partner manager acts on.
Operating in Romania? The Romanian version of this page covers Bolt Food alongside Glovo and Tazz.
Bolt Food is a third-party platform; FraudBite is not affiliated with it. Verify current dispute windows and reporting locations in your own partner account.