VIDEO: Pizza delivery man denied tip from car dealer gains national support
By: Samantha Lavien and Mike LaCrosse
Video of a local pizza delivery driver who says he was harassed by employees at a Westport car dealership has quickly gone viral.
The video shows a back-and-forth between the driver and employees over the pizza bill.
Surveillance video from inside Westport car dealership F&R Auto Sales was posted by the online. It’s since been pulled down from its original source, but is still making the rounds.
The pizza driver says he just thought he was getting a good tip.
“When I first left there I was walking out of there smiling thinking I got a nice tip”…but Palace Pizza driver Jarrid Tansey got way more than a tip when he dropped off food at F&R Auto Sales on Saturday.
“I’m just a humble pizza driver you know. I can’t believe people out there,” said Tansey.
Tansey got called back to the dealership from the Dartmouth pizza shop because the employees wanted their change back.
“Here is your change, it just doesn’t make sense why you would hand me a bill and would have me drive back to give you back,”said Tansey in the video.
Tansey says the total pizza bill was $42, and he was given $50 in two $20 bills and two $5 bills.
He thought that extra five was a tip.
“I gave you everything they gave me so we could get the correct change,” said Tansey.
The surveillance video of him giving back the money and questioning the customers was apparently posted online by the dealership.
“The manager apologized once for you … do you want him to apologize again for you? I got you on camera, video, audio everything buddy,” someone is heard saying in the video.
ABC 6 News spoke with Sales Manager Gary Baptista Thursday night. He says an employee who spoke some harsh words to Tansey in the video has been fired.
He also apologized on behalf of the entire business.
“It was intolerable you just don’t do that you have to have professionalism,” said Baptista.
Negative comments now flood Facebook and the company’s Yelp listing.
Tansey, who works two jobs, says he’s been getting support from all over the country since the video went viral.
A woman from Chicago created a GoFundMe Page for Tansey after seeing the video. As of 10 pm Thursday night more than $11,000 had been raised for him.
“For someone that is delivering pizza’s working so hard to keep their family going. I just wanted him to see that people were wonderful. And that this group of people was a minority,” said Amanda Rogers, who created the page.
Tansey says he is overwhelmed by all of the support that he has received.
F&R Auto Sales did release the following statement following the incident.
ON BEHALF OF THE OWNER WHO WAS NOT PRESENT DURING THE TAPING OF THIS VIDEO AND MANAGEMENT WE WILL LIKE TO PUBLICLY APOLOGIZE FOR THE ACTIONS THAT LED TO THIS SITUATION, THIS EMBARRASSING VIDEO GONE VIRAL ON THE INTERNET, WAS NOT RELEASED BY ANY EMPLOYEE OF F AND R AUTO SALES. IN ADDITION TO THIS APOLOGY THE OWNER AND PROPRIETOR WILL LIKE TO OFFER A CASH DONATION TO THE DELIVERY MAN IN THE VIDEO. THE ACTIONS OF THE FEMALE LED TO HER TERMINATION AND THE OTHER GENTLEMAN THAT WAS BELITTLING THE MAN IN THE VIDEO WAS NOT AN EMPLOYEE OF F AND R AUTO SALES AND HAD NO PERMISSION OR AUTHORIZATION TO RELEASE ANY SECURITY FOOTAGE FROM F AND R AUTO SALES. WE ARE CURRENTLY STRAIGHTENING OUT MATTERS ON THAT BEHALF.
© WLNE-TV 2015
