Pizza delivery (or any other kind, really)

"Rainbow" (rainbeaux) 12/05/2013 at 20:48 • Filed to: None

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A few years before I even had my license, I really wanted to deliver pizzas. I had heard from someone that the tips are typically generous (Say it costs $10 plus tax. They're pretty likely to just hand over a twenty and refuse change. At least in this other guy's experience) and, most importantly, the job is 90% driving. It's also very comparable to a road rally time trial, or something. As long as you can navigate the course in under 30 minutes, you win moneys! And depending on where you work, isn't there usually some sort of gas benefit? I know the guy who mentioned the tips also said his pizza place had a deal with this one gas station that any of their drivers could get half-priced gas during work hours. And I'm sure there are some that cover gas entirely.

But of course I have no idea.

Does anyone here have experience as a delivery driver? Is it as awesome as I have been led to believe? I mean, I know it's nothing to strive for in the long run, but as like a summer job or a part-time one, it seems to be the best choice all around.

thedevilinside > Rainbow 12/05/2013 at 20:52

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Those don't sound like the pizza places I know of, but I only know about a couple. My friends that delivered did pretty well with it. They got $1 per delivery (I think $2 now), it was ~4 years ago. And most people tipped a few dollars, some none, some more. But it was a lot of gas and miles. I couldn't get a job at any pizza place because all of the pizza places wanted the guys to deliver and I wouldn't ( new car I didn't want too many extra miles and the smell in.)

Forgetful > Rainbow 12/05/2013 at 20:53

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Don't do it with a car you like.

Tyler's SVT Focus Hates Him > Rainbow 12/05/2013 at 20:56

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Been delivering for two years now, and I can tell you without a shadow of a doubt it's the best job a car guy can have. My advice is to work at a big chain; they'll reimburse your gas and you spend your whole time driving, not working in the kitchen. I work at a small pizza place in my hometown and I spend about 40% of my time on the road, the rest is dishes and cleaning since drivers are 'closers' as well. Plus bigger chains have more flexible hours. For six months my senior year of high school I worked 60-hour weeks into the school year because of low staff numbers, which blew hardcore. It was still better than most kids' jobs our age, man, go for it. It's a joy to actually look forward to a high school job, and it's extremely well-paying. I made about $400 a month working 30-hour weeks, which is like 3 or 4 days a week tops. Most of that is wage, but if you work at a chain you can pull almost $100 a night (assuming the average tip is $4 and you make 20 or so deliveries). If you have any other questions about delivering pizzas I'd be happy to answer them!

Rainbow > thedevilinside 12/05/2013 at 20:56

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Ah, alright. I suppose that makes sense.
Still not an awful gig, though, I guess.

Ian Duer (320b) > Rainbow 12/05/2013 at 20:57

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I delivered pizza years ago, though times were different and gas was like $1 a gallon then. It was a lot like a road rally in a sense. I learned a crap ton about car control due to having to drive 8 hrs in the snow on multiple occasions. Tips were like for a 15ish order keep the change from a twenty. We also got a "mileage differential" where you basically got payed x cents per mile. No deals with gas stations here though but the mileage differential was adjusted so it basically payed for your gas and then some. From what I hear though from others people have become stingy with tips lately. YMMV

Rainbow > Tyler's SVT Focus Hates Him 12/05/2013 at 21:01

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Ohhh, awesome! That does seem pretty damn awesome.
Oh, and I guess I do have one more question: The other guy mentioned that it was extremely great when the weather was bad, because customers were more plentiful due to not wanting to go out, and also more empathetic for making you do the driving instead. He said that pretty much any time there was a weather advisory, tips would be at least twice what they usually were. Makes sense, but then again I know a lot of people just expect perfect service no matter what.

Tyler's SVT Focus Hates Him > Rainbow 12/05/2013 at 21:13

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I wouldn't say tips were double, but people definitely tip better than usual and are more likely to order delivery. Customers are understanding to your situation, especially since you're basically doing what they aren't willing to do, i.e., going out in ridiculous weather, so they'll compensate you as they see fit. If you deliver on holidays (Christmas, New Year's, etc.), though, then people get real generous. I've had people tip the delivery amount before on Xmas Eve, so huge tips are out there, they're just extremely rare.

PS- If you do end up driving and live in a four-season climate, invest in snow tires, I don't care what you drive. I have them on my Focus and even though I drive extremely carefully they've saved my ass more than once.

boxrocket > Rainbow 12/05/2013 at 23:45

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I've never done pizza delivery myself, but I'll share a couple of anecdotes of my own regarding food delivery.

I worked at a fast-casual "Mexican" restaurant chain, and we frequently had catering events. Sometimes we got to use the company van, other times it would be our personal vehicle. One delivery I had was made in my own car, and, not realizing that the cooks and catering folk had failed to properly seal several of the containers, over the course of the roughly 20-minute drive through the suburbs, my seats became logged with the liquid from cooked beans, spilled salsa, and a few drips of melted queso. Not a big deal, and thankfully not enough to have to make me go back to the restaurant to get replacement food, but bothersome, as my car reeked of the liquids for weeks (in the hot summer, no less), and it was partly embarrassing as I didn't notice the spilled beans until I was carrying in one of the containers and had bean juice dripping on me and the floor of the mansion I was making the delivery to.

The second story involves my brother, who did deliver pizza for a major chain that uses playing tiles as their logo. He worked in a college town while attending college, and sometimes tips were good (when mom and dad were "paying" via the credit card they setup for their student child), other times they were measly, and a couple times the students were a little short of the total (less than a dollar or two) and my brother would cover the difference rather than having to write off the entire order. His greatest triumph with that job was when a huge snowfall blanketed the town, and hungry people were calling for food, and he in his little Dodge Power Ram 50 (which I believe was a rebadged Mitsubishi truck) with 4WD kept on plunging through the drifts to bring hungered students their hot pies. His greatest peeve: the truck reeked of pizzas, such that he didn't feel like eating pizza for years after leaving the job, and rarely buys from the chain he used to work for.

Rainbow > Tyler's SVT Focus Hates Him 12/06/2013 at 00:19

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I live just outside of Atlanta (and just outside of Savannah, when at college) so snow tires just don't exist here. :P

i-do-strange-things > Rainbow 12/06/2013 at 00:26

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Ok-I'm probably older than your parents-but back in my teenager years, I used to deliver pizzas—in Daytona Beach. Oh man what a gig. I did it thru Daytona 500 race week (so-so tippers) bike week (GREAT tippers) + spring break. (crappy tips-but omg -the benefits!) The boss even told me when hired -if you don't get laid on this job theres something wrong with you. Every hotel room your are delivering to was 4 guys or 4 girls. "Here-take a drink/snort/toke of this-how much is the pizza?"

I was driving a hopped up Datsun 510-I could take out the passenger seat in a minute to put in the hot box. I was making $2.00 and hour + 40 cents per delivery. (This was 1980) And since Daytona is small + gas was cheap-it was good money. There were times where I had 3 deliveries to the same hotel at a time.

The only downside was I was off work at 5-and it would get busiest at 4. (for those unfamiliar with Fl., theres thunderstorm everyday at 4) Everyone would come off the beach + go to their room 'hey lets get a pizza!"

So as they say YMMV-but I just had a fun stroll down memory lane typing this. I miss that Datsun...

Tyler's SVT Focus Hates Him > Rainbow 12/06/2013 at 00:38

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Oh you should be totally fine then lol. I'm in Indiana and have a summer and winter set of wheels, even if it snows only like 4 times a year. Down south's a great place to deliver pizzas since you can hoon it year-round on the drive back to the restaurant, which you'll come to appreciate since you'll be driven insane by how carefully you have to drive when orders are in the car haha.

Rainbow > Tyler's SVT Focus Hates Him 12/06/2013 at 01:04

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Haha, yeah, I bet. xD I suppose the best part about getting a total of half an inch of snow every three years (maybe a bit of an exaggeration, but also maybe it's less) is that when it DOES stick to the roads, I'll.... wait no... I was going to say people will tip super well, but then I remembered when we got a once-in-a-generation blizzard a couple years back, people kept killing themselves because they think the regular speed limit is still too low. I spent entire days sitting by the road in a lawn chair, watching idiots in bro trucks bounce between the curbs after taking a corner at 50mph. Good times.

Tyler's SVT Focus Hates Him > Rainbow 12/06/2013 at 01:20

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Idiots. You'll see stupidity like that all the time on deliveries: teenage girls texting in their dad's Land Rovers, high school sophomores with Autozone fart cans over-revving 90's Civics, old people who really shouldn't be driving running stop signs in Cadillac's, middle-aged women in Camry's who have their cruise control locked in at 27 in a 35mph zone, God you're in for some surprises lol. You'll lose your faith in humanity pretty damn quickly just from seeing people like that and knowing that they are the average driver :|

Rainbow > Tyler's SVT Focus Hates Him 12/06/2013 at 01:34

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Oh gosh, I know. xD I encounter plenty of those people every time I get behind the wheel at all.
Of course, they make for good entertainment when caught on dashcam and compiled onto Youtube. Which is precisely what I would do.

Tyler's SVT Focus Hates Him > Rainbow 12/06/2013 at 02:03

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Post them here on Oppo so we can all enjoy the stupidity! I'd do the same but all the videos would be drowned out by me swearing at the idiots in front of me lol. But actually it's probably a good idea to have a dashcam; if you wreck (or more accurately if someone wrecks into you) it's great to have evidence you weren't just some idiotic college kid racing around town. Actually... maybe it's not a good idea to have a dash cam. If I were you I'd look up some insurance information before getting a job as a delivery driver. Insurance is tricky with drivers, as most policies don't cover you if you get in a wreck while on a delivery (since your car's technically being used for commercial use while you're not insured for it) unless you get commercial coverage, which you can look up if you want. Maybe check out some forums for more info. Most (if not all) drivers just don't tell their insurance agency they're delivering since it's extremely unlikely they'll wreck anyways. I have heard of dudes being dropped from their policies for getting into crashes, but they were both at fault, so I don't know how you insurer might deal with it. Obviously not to scare you, but it's definitely something to be aware of.

Rainbow > Tyler's SVT Focus Hates Him 12/06/2013 at 02:24

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True, true.
And yes, I definitely will! Here's one already, the only bad driver I caught the one time I actually managed to mount my phone up and use it:

You can't see it in the video, but almost immediately after it ends, an Ambulance comes by, lights and sirens on, in the exact lane the Civic stole. I mean, holy shit. Just one asshat so far, but it's a doozie. Passing over double yellows, running a stop sign, failing to signal, and failing to yield to an active emergency vehicle. All at the same time. Just wow.

Tyler's SVT Focus Hates Him > Rainbow 12/06/2013 at 02:42

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Fucking Christ man, wonder if you turn that into the police they'd do anything. Probably not, but wow... Was this in your town? Do people drive like that all the time? I'm live in a pretty wealthy town so all I get are soccer moms in Range Rovers and asshats in M3's and S4's driving like, well, asshats. But they aren't endangering anyone really, just annoying people. That dude in your video was downright dangerous.

Rainbow > Tyler's SVT Focus Hates Him 12/06/2013 at 02:54

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It's definitely too old to bother with now, but I probably should have done something. It was in my town, but it's certainly not typical behavior. There are plenty of bad drivers, but none quite that crazy.

DRNC > Rainbow 12/06/2013 at 03:19

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I worked as a delivery driver and it isn't bad, but the pay isn't great. Probably be nice for a second job though.

Tips are generally generous, but there are some that are just obnoxious. Like one guy I would deliver to would live 10 miles from the store (the furthest we go out) making it 20 mile round trip and would never tip. I hated that guy because I would loose money every time I had to deliver to him. (35mpg avg, diesel $3.50) Cost $2 in fuel alone. The store payed a % of the delivered goods which still wasn't enough to offset that cost.

Another annoyance was the people who lived in rural areas that were still in town. They had large rocks for driveways that were aways washed away and their driveways were a mile long. Their SUVs had no trouble getting in and out of, but my BMW wasn't so lucky. I had snapped my rear bumper ($800+) on one such delivery.

I eventually got a Jetta TDI to deliver in. It had greater ground clearance and twice the fuel economy as the BMW, but just took all the fun out of delivering. With the BMW it was as you said every delivery was a road rally, but with the Jetta 90hp kind of takes away from that. I'm sure it would be better if the Jetta was a manual, but the one I picked up cheap was an Auto.

It became a catch-22. Either drive the BMW and hope for no rural deliveries that would ruin my day and the bottom on my car or drive the Jetta had have a bad day regardless.