Written evidence from Name Withheld (SEG0081)

I am writing to you as requested as per recent telephone conversation regarding your investigation into the dpd self employed driver contracts.

I am a self employed owner driver with dpd at present and feel I should bring a few matters to your attention.

Obviously you are aware of the recent article in the daily mail where drivers are charged £150 per day if we are sick and unfit for work, may I emphasise on this matter and advise if we are lucky enough to provide courier cover for sickness and also our holiday cover that dpd actually take stops off our cover drivers to give to their own employed drivers so we still end up at a loss.

As we are paid per delivery our normal daily workload for example is 90 drops at £2 per parcel delivered (we dont get paid for undelivered items) so if we successfully deliver 85 stops = £170.

Providing cover is not cheap and ranges from £170-£200 per day, as I have stated what dpd do is take stops off our cover driver and only give them 60 stops for example if all are delivered thats £120 so we end up at least £50 per day out of pocket.

The second matter which you weren't aware of as per telephone conversation that on top of been charged when we are ill we are also charged when we fail to provide cover at  dpd's request most recently mothering Sunday I was charged £150 for not providing a service.
We were only given 2 weeks notice that we had to provide cover and obviously people have things planned and different circumstances.

Their reasoning is that they have to pay external couriers to cover your route but this is not the case as they give your stops to another driver within the depot who is already working hence they are not out of pocket and are using this rule as a money making scheme.

For me personally I had 40 stops on my route (3 hours work) mothers day at £2 a stop = £80 why am I charged £150????  When as stated they were given to another dpd driver anyway who they paid instead of me so they made £150 from myself been charged alone.

I know there were 11 drivers charged in my depot so how many were charged nationwide?

This happens all the time and when we question we are hit with a brick wall "tough they are the rules" its very much a bullying mentality and without a union as we are not employed we have nowhere to go.

We have now also been told we have to provide cover EVERY bank holiday weekend or we will be charged.

Nowhere in the contract does is stipulate these days, the contract is so heavy in dpd's favour stating we have to provide service at dpd's request so basically we are at their beckon call.

How can this be deemed as self employed told when you have to work and charged if you dont????

This is purely a  way of dpd evading paying sick/holiday pay NI and income tax and is been used as a way Of making revenue charging for not providing a service when they stipulate.

Apologies for the long winded email but I feel it needs bringing to your attention.

April 2017