The entire risk is with the employee.
Employees must use their own vehicle and receive mileage compensation of approximately 40p plus a small additional amount as this is not uniform for all employees. They are also not paid for the time spent driving to and from clients, which increases the risk in congested traffic or road diversions. Consequently, employees must cover the cost of their vehicle including repairs, tyres, fuel and general maintenance.
The current situation is that employees are charged approximately 10p more per litre of fuel without any compensation for this as it is not their fault. This further emphasises the financial risk they are taking.
For example, if an employee is paid £15 per hour, they are only compensated for 45 minutes per client. The time spent travelling between clients can be 30 minutes or more, resulting in a significant loss of income. In the end, they may only earn £5-7 per hour.
My advice is that this role is not worthwhile, even for those in desperate circumstances. Furthermore, employees responsible for route planning should consider alternative employment as their performance is inadequate.
There are many more negative aspects, but this review would be excessively lengthy.
