Before filing any legal claim or arbitration against Instacart, users must first attempt to resolve the dispute informally for 60 days.
This analysis describes what Instacart's agreement states, permits, or reserves. It does not constitute a legal determination about enforceability. Regulatory applicability and practical outcomes may vary by jurisdiction, enforcement context, and individual circumstances. Read our methodology
The 60-day mandatory waiting period before initiating legal proceedings delays users' ability to pursue formal remedies and functions as a procedural condition precedent to arbitration or litigation.
Interpretive note: Whether the 60-day mandatory informal resolution period is enforceable as a condition precedent to arbitration may vary by jurisdiction and the specific facts of individual disputes.
Instacart reorganized its Terms of Service effective May 9, 2026, introducing a new table of contents structure with eight primary sections covering introduction, company information, product-specifi…
Users must wait at least 60 days after initiating informal dispute resolution before they can file an arbitration demand or legal proceeding against Instacart, which delays access to formal remedies for disputes of any size.
How other platforms handle this
Before either party may seek arbitration, the party must first send to the other party a written Notice of Dispute describing the nature and basis of the claim or dispute, and the requested relief. A Notice to eBay must be sent by certified mail to eBay Inc., Attn: Litigation Department, 583 W. eBay...
For the purposes of these terms, the laws of California, USA, excluding California's conflict of laws rules, will apply to any disputes arising out of or relating to these terms or the services. These disputes will be resolved exclusively in the federal or state courts of Santa Clara County, Califor...
This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of California, without regard to its conflict of laws provisions. Any disputes arising under this Agreement shall be resolved through binding arbitration in San Francisco, California, except that either party may seek injunctive or other equi...
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"Before initiating any legal proceedings, all users must complete a 60-day informal dispute resolution process, except where prohibited by applicable law. See Section 7.— Excerpt from Instacart's Instacart Terms of Service
1. REGULATORY LANDSCAPE: Mandatory pre-dispute waiting periods are generally permissible under the FAA but may be challenged as procedurally unconscionable if they impose unreasonable barriers to dispute resolution. Some courts have found lengthy mandatory informal resolution periods to be unenforceable when they function primarily as delay mechanisms. The FTC has identified conditions precedent to arbitration as a potential area of concern in consumer contracts. 2. GOVERNANCE EXPOSURE: Low to Medium. The 60-day period is longer than many industry peer informal resolution requirements, which often range from 30 to 45 days. Courts have occasionally declined to enforce pre-arbitration procedural conditions that are deemed disproportionately burdensome for small-value consumer disputes, though enforcement outcomes vary by circuit. 3. JURISDICTION FLAGS: California courts have scrutinized pre-dispute procedural conditions in consumer arbitration clauses. Jurisdictions in the Ninth Circuit may apply a more searching review of whether the informal resolution process is genuinely available and functional before enforcing the waiting period. 4. CONTRACT AND VENDOR IMPLICATIONS: The 60-day informal resolution process creates a documented interaction period that may generate records relevant to subsequent arbitration. Legal teams should confirm that the informal resolution process described in Section 7 has an operational mechanism (such as a designated contact point or form) to ensure the condition precedent can be substantively satisfied. 5. COMPLIANCE CONSIDERATIONS: Compliance teams should ensure there is an operational process for receiving and tracking informal dispute notices to avoid the condition precedent being unenforceable due to lack of a functional mechanism. Documentation practices during the informal resolution period should be reviewed for consistency with arbitration procedural rules.
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The 60-day mandatory waiting period before initiating legal proceedings delays users' ability to pursue formal remedies and functions as a procedural condition precedent to arbitration or litigation.
Users must wait at least 60 days after initiating informal dispute resolution before they can file an arbitration demand or legal proceeding against Instacart, which delays access to formal remedies for disputes of any size.
No. ConductAtlas is an independent monitoring service. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Instacart.