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.
, 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, 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, , 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.
