Please read through the faq for answers to common questions. Questions have been categorised according to the following:
Q. What is the daily order deadline?
The daily order deadline varies by provider but is usually early in the morning on the day of delivery.
Q. How far ahead can I order lunch?
It is up to the provider to specify how far ahead orders can be placed but this is usually up to 4 weeks in advance.
Q. Can lunches be cancelled?
Orders can be cancelled for future lunches as long as the cancellation is received by the provider’s cut off time.
Q. Can I have more choice than is currently on the menu?
The School selects the menu items from the options the provider makes available. You should contact the school to discuss menu choice.
Q. How do I get refunded the money in my account?
To close your Lunchonline account and get a refund, log into your account and select "close account" from the menu. Please refer to the Terms of Use (clause 2.11 – 2.13) for details on the terms of the refund. No refund will be made if your account balance is below $5.
Q. What do I do if my child changes school?
You can update your child’s details to point to their new school, provided that school uses the Lunchonline programme. Login to the Lunchonline website and select "add / edit members" to edit your child’s details. The menu available to your child will now be from the provider(s) to the new school. If the new school doesn’t have Lunchonline and you would like suggest it, you can click "register your interest here" from the top of the login page to notify us, and we will approach the school.
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Q. Can the school control or select the provider?
Yes. Lunchonline can advise on which providers are already operating in your region. But if you have different provider that you would like to use, they can join the programme.
Q. How do schools control the provider’s menu?
A provider will normally be supplying more than one school. If there are some items that you want added to the menu, you should discuss this directly with the provider. Items on the menu that the school does not want to make available to the students can be hidden so students from that school do not see them as available items. The school can make items permanently unavailable or just on selected days (e.g. pies available on Tuesday and Thursday only). To make changes to your menu please contact Lunchonline.
Q. Why would a school have more than one provider?
Periodically a school may have for example a pizza day. By the school controlling the menu, the school can make only pizzas available for that day or both pizzas and the usual provider’s menu.
Q. What happens if the lunches are not delivered?
The school can print a report each day listing the children who have placed a lunch order and from which provider. If the lunch order(s) do not arrive at the prescribed time, the School can call the provider directly or call Lunchonline on 0800 LOL LOL (0800 565 565).
Q. What if the student does not have access to the internet?
At this stage Lunchonline is an internet based service only. If the student or parent/caregiver has no access to the internet, then they cannot take advantage of the programme.
Q. How does a school join?
The School must register with Lunchonline then complete the following steps:
The Lunchonline team will help the school through this process – please contact us for a registration form to get started. Once completed the school’s account will be activated and lunches can be ordered.
Q. Is Lunchonline available to all schools?
Yes Lunchonline is available nationwide. In some areas we do not yet have providers but schools can still register and Lunchonline will connect them with a new provider to complete the registration process. Schools should read the terms and conditions on the website.
Q. What is involved in being a Lunchonline Provider?
Q. Can I choose what Organisations we work with?
Yes you can, we understand that it is in your best interest to work with organisations that are close to your business and that would suit your product range.
Q. When do we get paid for the product?
You will receive payment for the lunches on the week following trading.
Q. How does delivery of the lunches work?
It is up to you to organize delivery to the organisation. Each organisation may require a different delivery time this would be discussed at the time of taking on a new organisation.
Q. Who sets the prices of the food?
You set the prices of the products that would be on the site, we encourage you to have a menu that would suit the organisation that you are working with i.e. Primary schools normally have lunches priced between $5 and$6.
Q. Can I find my own organisations to sell to?
Yes, finding your own organisations to work with is a great way to grow your business.
Q. Can we have different menus for different organisations?
Yes, you can have a range of menus across organisations and you can also have more than one menu at an organisation. For each menu and organisation, you specify the cut off time for orders.
Q. What kind of products should we put on the site?
The products in your menu will be driven primarily by the requirements of the organisation. For instance, schools will want to see a good range of healthy options whilst still offering some treat items.
