Driving/courier jobs

rickyroma

Shortly about to be made redundant. Scary part is my age... late 50s. Amongst all the evri/uber/dpd/amazon etc driving jobs which all seem to be self employed, are any of them actually worth going for? They all seem to be much the same regarding wear and tear on vehicles, fuel etc, making the net pay virtually pennies per hour if you believe all the negative stories online. Do any at all stand out as half decent to have a go at?

grandadgolfer

Have a look to see if your local Pharmacy needs prescription delivery driver chap I know does it M-F 9-4 £14 p/h so not brilliant wages but he’s done by 4 and weekend off. He was made redundant got a half decent payoff so was just after something pay for holidays etc plus using the pharmacy van for the deliveries

elsien

There was a fairly recent thread on here asking similar questions which you might be able to find despite the Forum rubbish search function.

There you go, not quite the same questions but similarities as to what to consider:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6658184/man-van

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6674959/charity-bags-semi-retired

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6374250/working-as-a-courier-for-a-weekend-job/p1

Brie

I get the impression that grocery delivery working for a supermarket is better than the freelance uber type roles. And I suspect there are lots of jobs driving postal trucks - but a friend who had a job with the post office picking up from mail boxes was given impossible schedules. Basically the line was that he could drive from A to B to C in X minutes which took no account for any traffic being on the road and in his way.

I have heard that there's a nation wide shortage of posties - the people who actually walk and deliver. We currently average 2 or 3 deliveries a month as the local office can't get the staff, the staff don't like walking around in the hot or rainy (when it is) weather and there's a priority (denied officially by royal mail at least locally) that package deliveries are prioritised over our bills and bank statements. Of course this does demand a certain level of fitness!!

All that said - what's scaring you about your age? Lots of employers are happy to have older, supposedly more dependable staff. You can try selling yourself on your dependability and experience. Depending on your background you might try agency work or contracts or project work. Of course it depends on what you are after.

I moved between 2 large financial corporations in my early 50s only to be confronted by possible redundancy 3 months into the new job. I liked the new organisation and actively pursued other roles there because I was willing to be flexible and was able to sell my skills. 4 years later again there was more redundancies and again I shifted into another role, repeated again after another 5 years, and then again. At that point I was 64 and happy to be made redundant and get a payout but wasn't ready to stop working. So I got a very part time role with a charity that was a nice change for the next 3 years when I decided it was time to stop and get on with non monetary things.

I wish you luck whatever role you decide to chase!

elsien

I have no clue why this forum lets me do some posts as hyperlinks but not others.

jim1999

A friend of mine drives for the NHS. Not well paid, but building up an extra pension is a weight off his mind, and of course fixed pay, holidays etc rather than self employed. By the sounds of it they are often looking for reliable people.

QrizB

I get the impression that grocery delivery working for a supermarket is better than the freelance uber type roles.

I was going to suggest supermarket deliveries too. PAYE employee, contractual hours, pension, paid holiday and sick leave, and most of the drivers I see look to be from the mature end of the working-age spectrum.

FreeBear

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82070189#Comment_82070189

Click on the two link chain icon, enter your URL in the top window of the pop up box.

Delivering for the likes of Evri - No. Just don't do it. They've recently cut the price paid for packets, with the smallest at just 15p (yes, 15p). You have to get rid of a lot just to get to minimum wage, then there are all the running costs of the vehicle. You might make 30-40% "profit" once costs have been accounted for. Don't forget you'll need to tell your insurer that you are driving for "hire & reward", and if they don't cancel your policy, will increase the annual premium by a lot.

It is a crap job, with (very) low pay. Oh, and you don't get a pension out of it either.

Savvy_Sue

I'm guessing that the drawback of supermarket home delivery is that although it may be fixed hours, it's certainly not 9 - 5! I often see deliveries being made in the evenings, up to 10 pm.

What's your background, could you eg drive a fork-lift?

rickyroma

Thanks for the comments. I've decided deliveries using my own car or whatever are not the way to go(especially evri!) too much stress for too little pay.

FreeBear

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82070981#Comment_82070981

Sainsburys offer delivery slots up to 23:30 in the evening. And where I am, I've had deliveries from a store some 45 miles away on their so called "Saver Slot". Sure, it saves me a couple of quid, but adds an hour of driving time for who ever gets the job. Hardly a saver for the environment.