Should cannabis products be delivered to customers from dispensaries locally? That’s a big question these days in Colorado. With a new change in 2024 after the first day of the year, delivery is now a possibility as long as customers have verified who they are first and in-person at the given dispensary. After that, order after order can be made remotely for delivery. Of course, that depends on the local dispensary having the service and option available too, something not all the operations are immediately ready to do. There are a number of challenges with the issue.

A Lot of Legalities Involved

Transporting cannabis like a pizza delivery involves a number of complicated issues immediately. First, there is the issue of the aggregated size of cannabis in one place in one transport. The dispensary definitely needs to have pre-clearance confirmed before getting on the road. Otherwise, headaches can start with traffic stops, and if an accident happens, insurance companies could deny insurance on the business vehicle without clarity of legal transport. This is the problem with new laws; not all the details are immediately worked out for every nuance afterward.

Then there is the issue of crime. Are dispensary delivery vehicles going to be a target? Legalization has clearly brought down the clandestine value of cannabis, making it a legal product on the open market, but it takes time for things to adjust, even with criminals. Society doesn’t suddenly switch behavior at a moment’s notice.

Jurisdictional Issues

Just because state law allows something doesn’t mean a locality will go along with the idea immediately. Local municipal codes may still have criteria and requirements in place that the city or town is unwilling to let go of for local protection. That doesn’t directly conflict with the new law’s permissions, but it could make things difficult enough that a dispensary doesn’t want to bother expanding into delivery.

What Can Consumers Expect?

One of the best things a consumer can do locally is stay connected with their dispensary. Most operations like a Cortez marijuana dispensary are going out of their way to keep customers informed and up to date on the latest rules as well as what to expect from the cannabis industry. Again, just because the law has passed in 2024 doesn’t mean every dispensary will be on board with delivery services. There’s a lot of additional responsibility that comes with the additional service, and not everyone can or wants to take on those challenges with their current operations. So it will transition over time in different communities.