Leading food delivery companies will introduce enhanced security checks on their apps to prevent the market being abused by illegal workers, following discussions with the government.
Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats are taking significant steps to protect the British public’s safety by preventing exploitation of account sharing by those looking to work.
Michael Tomlinson, the Minister for Countering Illegal Migration, and Minister Hollinrake, the Minister for Business and Trade, met with representatives from the 3 companies on Monday for productive talks at the Home Office in London.
All 3 firms have now committed to changing their processes to confirm substitute riders have the right to work legally in the UK directly, with Deliveroo the first to roll out a new substitute registration feature, including right to work checks, earlier this month.
The firms will continue to work closely with the government as they roll out their new operating procedures, to help them adapt to any emerging risks.
It follows a visit to Deliveroo’s London headquarters by both ministers last week.
While substitution is a legitimate part of self-employment, a small minority of drivers have taken advantage of the system to avoid completing right to work checks, leading to an increase in operations by Immigration Enforcement to prevent this.
This leaves customers with no way of knowing if the person handing over their food can legally work in the UK. It can also leave delivery firms in the dark about whether their substitute drivers have the right to work in the UK.
Minister for Countering Illegal Migration, Michael Tomlinson said:
We’re committed to cracking down on unchecked account sharing – and this meeting was a very positive step in the right direction.
I thank all 3 companies for their willingness to work with us to protect the British public, and sincerely hope that the changes we have discussed today are put into practice as swiftly as possible.
Illegal working puts their customers at risk, drives down wages and defrauds the taxpayer. It is vital that we shut down any loophole that allows it to happen.
Minister for Business and Trade, Kevin Hollinrake, said:
I support proactive businesses like Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats, who are working to ensure those who work with them are doing so legally, in turn protecting consumers and helping to grow the economy.
I am proud of the UK’s flexible and dynamic labour market and the gig economy plays an important role in offering flexible opportunities for those who may not be able to work in more conventional ways.
A Deliveroo spokesperson said:
We take our responsibilities extremely seriously and are committed to strengthening our controls to prevent misuse of our platform.
We are the first major platform to roll out direct right to work checks, a registration process and identity verification technology to ensure that only substitutes with right to work can continue riding on our platform.
We will continue to work in close collaboration with the Home Office and leaders in industry to support efforts in this area.
An Uber Eats spokesperson said:
At Uber Eats we are going to roll out identity verification checks to help ensure only those who legitimately use someone else’s account to earn with us are able to, and we are pleased to be working with government to find a solution.
A Just Eat spokesperson said:
We take our responsibilities on this issue seriously and have high expectations for couriers delivering on our behalf which is why we’re continuing our work together with industry and policymakers to develop a solution which will ensure couriers substituting their work do so in accordance with the law.
The government’s efforts to tackle illegal working, which is one of the biggest pull factors in people coming to the country illegally, are just one part of our abuse of the country’s borders.
Enforcement visits rose by 68% last year and arrests more than doubled, while returns of people with no right to be in the UK also increased by two-thirds.
Last week, the landmark Safety of Rwanda Act became law and an accompanying Treaty was ratified, paving the way for the first flights to take off in the coming weeks.
