Giving lifts to work dilemma

quidsy

not the op's problem though is it?

Anyway. the question was raised why the op mentioned the guy earning more than him.

Whether the guy can drive or not he can afford a vehicle but choses to not buy one instead relying on the op to buy, insure & maintain a car so he can get cheapo lifts to work.

happyc84

good luck to the OP in telling the chancer where to go, I mean 18 months would drive me mad; no pun intended.
i car pooled with another worker for 9 months, worked out great; saving money back then and the chance to sleep while a passenger.
I had one guy arrange for me to give him a lift, I turned up waited for him, nothing, he'd gone to another site. Totally couldn't be bothered to let me know.

d123

Money_maker wrote: »

Dont know why everyone says to make an excuse and find another way to get to work for a while. Grow a pair and tell him you are no longer able to give him a lift. End of. Mind you, better tip off the other driver first. No excuses needed.

OP (and all the posters suggesting making an excuse) probably want to avoid coming out the house one morning (or evening after work) to find his car keyed or tyre punctured.

Give the guy a plausible excuse and he wouldn't hold a grudge (or shouldn't).

-taff

I wouldn't give anyone a lift if I had to drive 2 miles out of my way in the morning..I'm barely awake as it is at that time, I don't need the added un-bonus of trying to get someone else to work on time.

I hate giving lifts anyway, because at some point, they'll be late, you'll be late, they'll get upset, you'll get upset. Better to avoid it completely.

I'd be telling him i couldn't do it anymore, with no excuses.

dktreesea

vikingaero wrote: »

Most non-car owners are utterly ignorant of the true cost of running a car. And most non-car owners who continually ask for lifts do so because the world owes them. If you can't get to a job with unusual working hours under your own steam then what the hell is the point of taking the job in the first place?

I was in the same boat with an ex-colleague:

His car broke down and he asked me for a lift. My normal commute is 7.5 miles/11 minutes door to door. When he asked for a lift I had to drive 7.5 miles to the office, go past the office for 6 miles and drive back 6 miles to the office - about 45 minutes in all.

The problem is that we sometimes start at 5am. So getting up at 4am is tough but normal. Getting up at 3.30am is a BIG ballache. But it's temporary isn't it?!

So after week 1 of lifts, he said the part he bought off eBay was incorrect, week 2 of lifts, correct part but it was the power steering, week 3 of lifts, needed a special tool, week 4 of lifts, needed seals, week 5 of lifts, his Dad wasn't around to help him out etc etc.

By week 7 he was in denial that I'd given him lifts for 7 weeks - he said it was only a couple of weeks. Another colleague challenged him and called him an idiot. He retaliated and he blurted out: "I look at my bank statement and see how much I save each week on fuel so who's the idiot?!"

That was his last lift.

Quite!

OP, this is the post you should be listening to. If your colleague needs to get to work, is there any reason why he can't do as you do, i.e. buy a car, learn how to drive it and get himself to and from work?

When I had a company car, a colleague asked me for a lift, (on the basis that I wasn't paying for the car). "Sure", I said. "My way home is north along the high street," (he lived south across the river) "where would you like me to drop you off?"

OP, it's not just about the money; it's also your time. How is this for a plan? You and the other guy giving him lifts start to give each other lifts, halving your costs and not leaving any time at all (what a pity!) to pick up the pound a ride guy?

dktreesea

PeacefulWaters wrote: »

Is it your car or a company car?

If it's your car I'd suggest using the HMRC rate. 45p x 4 miles that he causes = £1.80. 45p x 5 miles divided by 2 = £1.12. So £3 a day would be fairish.

Company car where you pay your own fuel at 15p a mile would make £1 a day seem about right.

Do check your insurance. It will almost certainly preclude you from profiteering. But the figures above are break even.

And what about the time element? It's bad enough being someone's regular taxi service without being expected to do it for free.

The OP sounds like this fellow's regular chaffeur. All he needs is a cap and a couple of extra flourishes, like getting out of the car to open the door for his colleague, and perhaps buying the morning paper for him to read on his ride in and he'll feel the full part - someone else's slave.

nearlyrich

I once got conned into giving a new colleague a lift as his car was off the road and his brother had dropped him off at the quite remote business park we worked on at the time. I discovered after a couple of weeks that he hadn't actually passed his test or got a car so I told him to do one.

andywicks

Are there any insurance implications with this arrangement? Taking payment for a regular journey - would this be classed as for hire or reward (something that most insurance policies specifically exclude)?

A car share, or splitting fuel costs, is probably OK, but more than covering direct costs might put you in a dodgy position.

A

Richard53

andywicks wrote: »

Are there any insurance implications with this arrangement? Taking payment for a regular journey - would this be classed as for hire or reward (something that most insurance policies specifically exclude)?

A car share, or splitting fuel costs, is probably OK, but more than covering direct costs might put you in a dodgy position.

A

I believe that this was addressed by HMRC some years ago. You can accept contributions to the actual running costs of the car (i.e. insurance, tax, maintenance, not just the fuel) and as long as there isn't an element of profit (or charging for your services as driver, which would make it hire and reward) you are fine. As long as the money you receive genuinely reflects overall running costs the tax people won't be bothered. I would assume that the insurers think likewise.

w50nky

Just as an aside, after swapping my tale of lift abuse with a workmate

He recalled the tale of a regular parasite on another plant who bummed a lift from lots of fellow colleagues as a "one off" in a rota pattern.
One night after working overtime my workmate was asked if he was going straight home after finishing at 8pm. Receiving the reply that he was indeed going straight home was asked if he could cadge a lift to his house.
He duly gave the guy a lift but unfortunately for the guy, my colleague had moved house to a town in the opposite direction!

He played the part brilliantly he reckoned and he said the expression of incredulity was awesome. He said he presumed he had known where he lived now. The guy in turn assumed he was just making a detour for some reason or other.

Pointed to the bus stop and left it at that.