Taxi Driver Online

UK cab trade debate and advice
It is currently Fri May 01, 2026 7:05 am

All times are UTC [ DST ]




Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 7 posts ] 
Author Message
PostPosted: Sat Feb 13, 2021 7:33 am 
Offline

Joined: Wed May 16, 2012 6:33 am
Posts: 18531
Suspect this is mainly BS. I don't doubt they've been quite successful in diversifying into deliveries. But suspect the driver numbers thing is misleading, and mainly the usual turnover exacerbated by Covid.

So mainly marketing/PR spiel from start to finish, and one of the restaurants involved even gets a shout out to promote its wares.

Advertorial, churnalism, blah, blah. And that it's also effectively a recruitment advert should be obvious right at the end :roll:


Nottingham taxi firm DG Cars takes on 175 new drivers during pandemic - and there's still jobs going

https://www.nottinghampost.com/whats-on ... 75-4996110

They're delivering everything from false teeth to fish and chips

Image
Image: Nottingham Post

With fewer people out and about during lockdown it has been a lean time for taxi firms but one Nottingham company has bucked the trend to take on 175 new drivers.

As well as picking up passengers, the cab drivers are delivering tapas, fish and chips and curries.

Rather than losing drivers, DG Cars has taken on more staff to help closed restaurants stay afloat during the pandemic by delivering takeaways to customers.

Local eateries and taxi drivers were both hit hard by lockdown restrictions, which prevented people from eating out. Restaurants were left without custom and taxi drivers were also desperate to pick up work after passenger numbers plummeted.

Image
Image: Nottingham Post

In response, DG Cars decided to launch a new delivery service that would enable local restaurants to reach people in their homes and allow taxi drivers to find a new source of jobs.

The initiative has been such a success that the taxi firm is working with more than 160 restaurants across Nottingham and Derby, with around 3,000 delivery jobs being passed through to drivers each week.

The taxi firm is now extending the service to the retail sector, to help them get goods out to customers.

They're doing deliveries for large cash and carry, Hyperama in Derby, convenience stores and has partnered with NHS pharmacies to deliver medicine.

Drivers have transported false teeth, live leeches and glass eyes and can take pretty much anything - as long as it fits into a taxi - to anywhere in the UK.

In the future the business hopes to partner with "any and every" type of retailer - from florists to butcher's.

On top of the 175 new drivers recently recruited, to meet demand the company hopes to recruit a further 75 drivers within the next four months.

Omair Javaid, director at DG Cars, said: “In a difficult economic climate, this has been a fantastic way for us to support local businesses and connect the community.

“It has also opened up doors for our business – it’s enabled us to provide a new opportunity to our drivers, who have been struggling due to the lack of traditional passenger and corporate work.

“We plan to continue rolling out the service in the months to come. Many vulnerable people are currently relying on deliveries, so the more businesses we can work with, the better for them in terms of the options they have available.”

Image
Image: Nottingham Post

Restaurants using the service range from Asian street food takeaway Chao Chao and Michelin recommended tapas restaurant Bar Iberico to Indian restaurant Masala Junction and chippy Bestwood Fisheries.

Ryan Schofield, head of internal business development at Chao Chao, a franchise takeaway with sites in Arnold, West Bridgford and Beeston, said: “Working with DG has solved many problems for us – we were struggling to find enough drivers to fulfil our orders during busy periods.

“With access to a huge network of drivers, we now know orders will be collected quickly – and food will arrive with our customers as fresh as it did when it left our premises.”

Restaurant customers simply order online or over the phone. The delivery element is then entered into Delivery Point, a technology platform developed by Autocab, which allocates the work to local DG Cars drivers.

To apply for a job with DG Cars go to dgcars.co.uk


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Sat Feb 13, 2021 7:34 am 
Offline

Joined: Wed May 16, 2012 6:33 am
Posts: 18531
Quote:
The initiative has been such a success that the taxi firm is working with more than 160 restaurants across Nottingham and Derby, with around 3,000 delivery jobs being passed through to drivers each week.

According to their website they've got 750 drivers. So that's four delivery jobs per driver per week =D> :roll:

They also seem to have dedicated Deliveroo-style jobs (thus not plated cars, presumably), meaning even less jobs for the badged drivers.

If they've got 750 drivers that also puts the 175 new starts into context. Hardly newsworthy, and just PR BS [-(


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Sat Feb 13, 2021 9:49 am 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: Sat Apr 01, 2006 11:47 pm
Posts: 20858
Location: Stamford Britains prettiest town till SKDC ruined it
DG cars had close to 1250 drivers at one point so I am surprised that 3000 jobs per week is keeping them that busy ! so down to 750 drivers equates to a big drop in cars on the system.

Also they were on Autocab and had their own app provided by Autocab so is this Uber eats contracts being fulfilled by them ?

_________________
lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Sat Feb 13, 2021 7:14 pm 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: Wed Sep 03, 2003 7:30 pm
Posts: 57350
Location: 1066 Country
No way could that council license 175 new drivers during this pandemic.

B&H council have licensed less than 10 in that time.

_________________
IDFIMH


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Sun Feb 14, 2021 7:10 am 
Offline

Joined: Wed May 16, 2012 6:33 am
Posts: 18531
Sussex wrote:
No way could that council license 175 new drivers during this pandemic.

B&H council have licensed less than 10 in that time.

Maybe Nottingham Council just more efficient :idea:

Anyway, even ignoring that, no doubt some will just be the usual churn from other offices.

And I suspect they're also counting new dedicated delivery drivers - no badge or plate required, obviously.

Can't see much information on their website, but the online application form allows you to specify either car, motorbike, scooter or push bike:

https://dgcars.co.uk/delivery-driver

And I wouldn't be surpised if most of the 175 new starts are back out the door by now anyway :-s


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Sun Feb 14, 2021 6:19 pm 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: Fri Feb 04, 2005 8:23 pm
Posts: 5003
Location: Lincoln
Can’t see why you would need to be on DG books to do food delivery. Some hack/ ph drivers in Lincoln are doing this, and also a lot of members of the public. Why not do it directly with the established app based delivery company? Apparently you log in for a four hour shift with claimed earnings of £80 for four hours. I will never know. Lincoln is swamped with them.

_________________
Former taxi driver


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Mon Feb 15, 2021 6:07 pm 
Offline

Joined: Wed May 16, 2012 6:33 am
Posts: 18531
Jimbo wrote:
Can’t see why you would need to be on DG books to do food delivery. Some hack/ ph drivers in Lincoln are doing this, and also a lot of members of the public. Why not do it directly with the established app based delivery company? Apparently you log in for a four hour shift with claimed earnings of £80 for four hours. I will never know. Lincoln is swamped with them.

Indeed, if I wanted to do dedicated food deliveries then Deliveroo etc would be the obvious choice.

But this article is just PR spiel and a recruitment advert, and DG obviously want to model themselves on Uber/Uber Eats. So they're obviously trying to generate interest from restaurants and takeaways too.

And a firm of that size with only 3,000 food deliveries per week suggests that they're currently trying to develop the business rather than the portrayal in the article of something that's an integral part of the firm as a whole.


Top
 Profile  
 
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 7 posts ] 

All times are UTC [ DST ]


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 788 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot post attachments in this forum

Jump to:  
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Group