Pizza delivery rider.... Sigh

[skylineonfire]

Well after being made redundant due to the recent swathe of companies going into administration I'm looking for a quick replacement to keep me going until I can find something more permanent.

Pizza world are after a delivery rider. So I rang up and had a chat with the manager, he told me to drop in my CV as they really need a rider for the traffic in our area, the cars are simply taking too long. Popped in and dropped my CV in to the shift manager and had a chat with him this evening.

Long story short he seemed to think they wanted someone with their own bike to run deliveries on. Now I'm okay with this in fact I'd much rather use one of my bikes than some deathtrap pizza 50cc scooter, but it doesn't sound right to me.

Surely they'd have to pay courier insurance or something on my bike, plus fuel plus a wear and tear per mile? Or am I dreaming expecting to get that? I just assumed it'd be on one of their crappy bikes or scooters but turns out they have no riders only drivers hence their search for a few riders.

Anyway, anyone with any feedback, and even better, anyone with any experience in this industry want to chime in and let me know what its like etc?

Thanks in advance,

[Derivative]

The pay package is the pay package.

As long as you're profiting after insurance, fuel, wear and tear etcetera - surely it makes no odds whether you organise that yourself or the company does.

If they're paying NMW, I'd expect them to compensate you for any expenses.

If they're paying 15 quid an hour or it's salaried, you can do it.

Any chance you could speak to one of the car drivers there? The situation would be basically equivalent. Perhaps don't let on that you're going for the bike job, they might not like that...

Personally though, I'd be wary after hearing 'the drivers are taking too long'. That implies that you should be quick, hence filtering. To filter as a job I'd want a decent wage. It's all good and well when you're doing it for fun, not so much when it's your life on the line day in, day out for 6 quid an hour.

[Snorty]

When I worked for Pizza Hut, you had to use their bikes as the insurance was all above board for those only.

The drivers got national minimum wage, plus 70p a mile, to cover wear and tear and running costs - but as we used the scooters it was just NMW.

I would expect to be paid an additional amount on top of NMW, as you're going to have to take out some kind of extra insurance if they aren't going to, which will cost you extra.

Personally, I preferred using their bikes, as if you bin it, it's not yours...
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Current: Yamaha FZ1 '07 | GSXR 750 SRAD

Past: CB125TDC | TZR125 | GPZ500 | CBR600F3 | ZX9-R | GSXR1000 K4

[st3v3]

[Derivative]

[haroman666]

Also bear in mind that you need to be able to carry the pizza's... Not sure what your situation is but i'd be hard pressed to find a decent fitting universal back-box rack that would be sturdy enough to take those big boxes they stick on the scoot's.

Plus i'm a bit vain and wouldn't like having such ghastly additions to my pride and joy; but that's just me.
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The mistresses: 2000 Honda CBR600f, 2000 Honda VTR1000

[Derivative]

[st3v3]

Most places want you to do it, and pay the expenses for the privilage.

The only reason I don't do pizza delivery in the car which I'd be good at is because they expect me to put business use on my own insurance and pay for it, so I can work for them.

It's all well and good telling them where to GTFO, but they have numpty English and several foreign workers who are happy to pay for the privilage of working for them.
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Roger wrote: Women don't get damp for clingy puppies. Get some better happy pills, hit the gym & buy a medallion the size of a dinner plate. Job done

[Ingah]

[Vracktal]

It is the noblest profession.

Worked pizza delivery for four years while at Uni, and I doubt they'll have you using your own bike for three reasons.

1.) They'd have to compensate you for fuel per-delivery which is a lot more hassle than just running their own bikes and telling you to top up when needed then pay out of your float.
2.) Their insurance will unlikely cover you on your own bike. I asked about using my own bike while working for Papa Johns, boss man told me there was no chance since the insurers were troublesome enough with the car deliverers and he didn't need another headache.
3.) They'd have to fit your bike with a pizza box. They're actually fairly expensive, and mounting kits generally only exist for the more common scooters and 125 bikes. It'd be a lot to invest in someone who could conceivably quit after a month, leaving them with no deliverer and a box that only fits your bike.

You'll probably be put on a Honda ANF125 if you're lucky or a cookie-cutter chinese bike if you're not. At my work, we had a fleet of 3 ANFs, each 'tied' to a biker, so only that biker would ride it. Means you get to know your bike well, but also means if you come unstuck and bend it, you're completely culpable. Also makes for some cool carpark photos.

https://i1080.photobucket.com/albums/j328/Vracktal/b1223e05.jpg

As for pay, expect minimum wage. Delivering in a car earns you between £0.70 to £1.50 per drop extra, but on a bike there's no fuel commission, you fill the bike up when it's empty, put the receipt in your float and hand it in when you cash up at the end of the day, it's added back to make up your total. There's good money to be made on tips though- On a good friday or saturday night I was making £15-£20 in tips from drunken people overgrateful to get their food and handing over amounts they probably regretted when they sobered up. Also, after a while you'll notice a pattern of regular tippers build up, cheers you up knowing you're riding to a house where the customer is gonner hand you £2.

Other stuff you should know-
Company usually provides the biker gear. Helmet, jacket, and waterproof trousers is the norm, all company logo'd. After a few days you'll learn which set is the best and start stashing it in the equipment cupboard for personal use.

Expect to work tills & phones while it's busy, or help clean the surfaces and sweep up when it gets late. Also expect to be asked to work past when your shift ends if it's super-busy, or be sent home early if it's super-quiet.

Buy a good A-Z. This is essential even if you know every road in the area. In the back of the pizza shop, there'll be a blown up map of the delivery area covered by that shop (usually a whole wall size), and sometimes a computer with a google maps connection. Once you get the ticket for the delivery you carry, it'll have a code corresponding to the grid on that map. Once you've found the house on the map, you basically have to commit the route to get there to memory, and even the best navigator can get it wrong. If you ever end up lost, at night, trying to remember the last few turns to get to an address you'll suddenly realise how useful A-Zs are. Also, it's likely during busy periods you'll have to do multiple drops- If there are two or three drops within a few miles of each other, you'll likely have to take all three in one go. The A-Z is priceless in situations like this.

Carry a torch. Every city has at least one dark, unlit road where all the houses have long drives and all have names instead of house numbers. These houses are a pain in the arse to deliver to at night, but having a decent torch you can shine at each house as you ride along makes it slightly more bearable.

Carry a mobile phone. The ticket for your delivery will also have the phone number the person who ordered the delivery used. Sometimes, you can't find the house you're supposed to deliver to, or the person who ordered it fell asleep in front of the TV or went upstairs and blared dubstep through their headphones so they can't hear you pounding on the door, or it's in a block of flats and the buzzer is broken. A mobile phone is invaluable in these situations.

When the weather is cold and rainy, doing drops sucks. But, the upside is a soaked, bedraggled but determined looking pizzaboy, battling valiantly to stay on his feet and breathless from walking up three flights of stairs to apartment 3C tugs at the heartstrings and earns beaucoup bucks. From my experience tips are usually double at the end of a day when the weather is harsh.

So yeah, that's my take of things. Having said it all, pizza delivery by bike is great fun- the bikes are slow but a hoot to ride, the pay's meh but tips can help make up for it, and in the summertime it's absolutely the mutts nuts since you're basically being paid to ride around all day.
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2007 BMW R1200R: On road
2009 BMW G650X Challenge: On road
1975 Norton Commando 850: Off road, awaiting recommissioning

[Snorty]

Ingah - The little Peugeot Ludix things are terribly slow aren't they!

The engine actually holds you back downhill. They're restricted by a variator washer, well one of the lads ( ) was friends with a motorbike shop, and took it there on one of his deliveries, where they whipped open the casings, and removed the washer.

45mph on a flat, and downhill speeds were only limited by the decline after that

As for tips, greatly depends on the area, where I worked everybody was very tight, you'd be lucky to get £9 on a pissing wet day when you're wet through to your socks. Sometimes you get people waiting for their penny change...
____________________
Current: Yamaha FZ1 '07 | GSXR 750 SRAD

Past: CB125TDC | TZR125 | GPZ500 | CBR600F3 | ZX9-R | GSXR1000 K4

[Ingah]

[Ja7]

It's the tips that make it worth while, plus I'm sure it's only a stop gap till you find a suitable job

[stinkwheel]

I have it on good authority that it is not unusual to suppliment pizza delivery income by distributing other goods along with the pizzas, having as you do, an iron clad excuse for doing the rounds of the local council estate later on on a Friday night.

"Hi. Can I order a 10 inch extra smoky please.".
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[Shinigami]

if they're not providing the bike i'd tell them to swivel,

No change i'd be adding all the extra miles to my own bike (lowering it's value) while increasing maintenance and fuel etc.

Probably come out losing more than you'd be making
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Current: Honda City Fly CLR125 2003 Honda CB600F Hornet 2008 Yamaha FZ6 S2 + 1991 Kawasaki GPZ500
"Once you realize what a joke everything is, being the Comedian is the only thing that makes sense.

[Sable]

Other than the no bike thing did the guy seem OK? If yes, put a rough pricing of how much it would cost you and your bike for say 10 mile and 50 mile. Hand it to him I say you would need help with the costs. Would take you 5 minutes with a calculator, might get you a job, and if the guys reasonable, might save someone else getting screwed later down the line

[devojunior]

[Snorty]

[st3v3]

[Ingah]

[st3v3]