I have never been angry eating pizza before. That is, until now. After forcing each other to go to the gym for two long, hard, and painful hours, my roommate and I were devastated to find out that the dining hall had closed for the night. After complaining about being starving for a good twenty minutes, we did the only thing we could do at this point: We ordered Dominos. Now that you are up to speed with the timeline, it’s likely that you are still wondering why pizza made me so mad. As we were ordering our pizza online, we noticed something as we were checking out. Our pizza costed $10, plus tax, but then we had also been charged $3 as a “delivery fee”. Confused as to what exactly this was, we took to Google to find some answers. Not only does this “delivery fee” not even touch the hand of the person who actually delivers the pizza, but many major pizza companies, like Dominos, have created this “fee”. The best part? “It’s to help cover delivery costs”. That’s a great cover-up and all, but making a pizza costs the exact same, regardless if you are personally picking up your pizza or having it delivered. Think about it, let’s say 20 people ordered from a particular major pizza company in one day, that’s the equivalent to another $60 towards the franchise on this given day at this one location. Sure, an extra $60 won’t make or break the company, that is, until we evaluate this on a grander scale. There are over 10,000 Dominos franchises and restaurants world-wide. Going off of our previous scenario, if each location in the world delivered 20 pizzas in one day with the “delivery fee” in place, the Dominos corporation has raked in a mere $600,000 dollars in one day. Not too shabby. Assuming these conditions to be true each day of the year, Dominoes is enjoying $219 million dollars a year from their lovely “delivery fee”. That’s what our $3 dollars has gotten us. On top of this, this is $219 million dollars earned from capitalizing at the driver’s expense. Not only was the driver the one who had delivery input costs, such as gas and mileage on their vehicles, but many people would assume this to be their driver’s tip. I did, before I looked it up.

Not to throw pizza corporations under the bus, because when you really think about it, these hidden fees are everywhere. Last year, I attended a Taylor Swift concert and had my tickets mailed to me via e-mail, yet I was charged a “delivery fee”. What came as a shock to me is how Ticketmaster found a way for a digital ticket to require an input cost. Interesting, isn’t it? After going on a rant about my feelings regarding hidden costs, my roommate chimed in. After going to the financial aid office to pay her tuition, she had been charged $111 dollars as a “service fee”. Since when did forking over $5,000 dollars for tuition require a major university $111 dollars worth of “service”?

In 2006, a study was performed by the Ponemon Institute. Their findings? The average adult spends 942 of their hard earned dollars on hidden fees. Which is perfectly believable, that is precisely why they are called “hidden fees”. The true danger is that they are so perfectly subtle, unavoidable, and consumers have no way to know better than to be naive. Major companies call this a “service charge”. I call this manipulation.

I want to be an attorney. In my eyes, this isn’t just a $3 dollar charge. It’s unjust, it’s manipulation of consumers, and it’s a prime example of companies with too much power. Dominoes has the ability to make up a fee like this to generate more revenue. Who will stop them? It’s 3 dollars, we will suck it up and pay it. Combatting a $3 charge isn’t worth it for the every-day person. Attorneys and legal representation are expensive. Proving the manipulation of these fees in the court of law is hardly worth it for people like you or I. Yet, we are the ones that bear the costs. However, knowing that minimum wage in the state of Florida is $8.05, and our $3 will end up in the hands of a C.E.O. or a high-level businessman who already lives in a mansion and drives a Porsche is where the issue remains. Meanwhile, this delivery driver is not getting the tip they deserve because a “delivery charge” sounds a lot like a tip, if you ask me. If you’ve made it this far and haven’t quit reading my rant, I applaud you, but presume you think I have a solution to the consumer deception that comes with hidden fees. I don’t. We will still order pizza. We will still go to concerts. We will still pay our tuition. That’s the exact reason why companies are so successful in doing this. I think the first step is being aware. Who knew paying an extra 3 dollars for pizza would prompt a financial epiphany at 11 at night? Next time, frozen pizza is always an option.