Instacart deactivated a shopper, and he nearly lost his home. He battled the company and won $28,000 in back pay.

• A former Instacart shopper fought the company over deactivation and won a $28,000 payout.
• The shopper used arbitration, which Instacart mandates for contractors who want to challenge it.
• The monthslong process required hours of research, the shopper said.

Jason Via had been an Instacart shopper for 2 ½ years in July 2021 when the company deactivated his account. The reason? A Walmart self-checkout charged him for an extra item while he was ringing up an order, he said.