By Vega
Yelp said that it will now allow users to rate restaurants’ safety precautions and sanitary measures related to COVID-19.
A restaurant’s review page will now ask patrons if the staff was wearing masks, as well as whether or not social distancing is enforced in a given establishment.
The information will then be added to the restaurant’s main Yelp page, with users being alerted with a bright yellow exclamation point icon and a message reading “Social distancing might not be enforced” if a majority of reviewers report that safety measures are not being followed.
Yelp product chief Akhil Kuduvalli Ramesh said in a blog post that the company will only assess restaurants based on their previous 28 days of reviews, and that they will be updated daily.
Users will also be able to report whether or not staff wear gloves, whether tables disinfected between meals and whether the restaurant provides hand sanitizer. They will also be able to check off whether the restaurant has heated outdoor seating, and whether or not it has disposable contactless menus.
Yelp had previously updated its platform in June to allow restaurants to detail the coronavirus precautions they were taking, but did not allow users to verify it for themselves.
