London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 18, 2025

Cost of living: Deliveroo and Uber couriers face uphill struggle

Cost of living: Deliveroo and Uber couriers face uphill struggle

Lots of us have been cutting down on treats as the cost of living has continued to rise.

It's meant luxuries like takeaways have become a rarity for many, and you might be more likely to catch the bus than take a taxi.

And this is having a knock-on effect on the people who'd usually deliver that pizza or drop us off after a night out.

Deliveroo rider Atlanta Martin says she's noticed people ordering less and has had to adapt to limit her costs.

"I delivered in a car for three years and now I've swapped to an e-bike," the 22-year-old says.

"Our pay hasn't gone up, sadly.

"So being on a bike, obviously I'm not spending on fuel, insurance, all of that."

Atlanta started riding in Worthing, near Brighton, during lockdown, sharing her trips on TikTok and YouTube, where she's grown her following to more than 50,000.

"Lockdown was great because it was so busy and the pay was slightly higher then, but it's dropped since," she says.


The TUC estimates more than 4 million people in the UK work in the gig economy

The Trades Union Congress (TUC) estimates that about 4.4 million people in the UK are platform gig economy workers - people who find jobs on apps like Deliveroo and Uber.

One of the main advantages these companies advertise is that working for them is like being your own boss.

You get to choose which jobs you do and when.

It can provide flexibility and you're in control of how much you earn based on how many deliveries or pick-ups you do. At least, that's the theory.

But there is a downside too - workers aren't paid expenses such as fuel, or for the time they spend waiting outside restaurants to pick up your meals.

Often, that can mean what drivers and riders earn falls below the UK National Living Wage, which is currently set at £9.50 an hour.

Atlanta lives with her partner which she said has cushioned the impact of rising prices.

Although her hourly rate can sometimes be as little as £3, she says it often balances out during busier times.

During the World Cup, for example, an increase in demand meant she could earn up to £35 an hour.

"You can make the money, I think you've just got to put in the hours," says Atlanta.

"And being on a bike now, obviously not having the extra expenses, has really made a difference."

Shaf Hussain says couriers have to take more risks to earn the same pay they got last year


Shaf Hussain has been working for Deliveroo and Uber Eats since he was 21, delivering takeaways and shopping.

"Most people, they have fun in their 20s, being like: 'Let's go out partying, let's go enjoy life," says the 28-year-old Londoner.

"I was working as a courier most of my 20s, and now I haven't had a holiday in seven years."

Since the cost-of-living crisis hit, "we're working a lot more for a lot less," he says.

Like Atlanta, he's noticed fewer orders being made, meaning less work is available to him.

Depending on how busy it is, Shaf says he can make anywhere between £6 to £15 an hour, "but there's always a cost for that".

He lives with his parents to save money but hopes to one day soon have a place of his own.

He says he puts pressure on himself to work a lot more - often meaning he has to weigh up his safety and wellbeing against his need for income.

After several accidents over the years, Shaf has avoided working in poor weather.

But, due to rising prices, he's now having to reconsider.

"Working in the snow, working in bad weather conditions is a risk," he says.

"And for us to take a day off, that means the next day we have to then go even harder than what we would normally.

"To take one day off we need to work two days essentially."

Unions want to see greater support for gig economy workers


The TUC and other unions want to see greater protections for workers like Shaf and Atlanta who they say miss out on basic working rights.

These include things like holiday pay, sick pay and pensions.

One of those joining the calls is the IWGB, which describes itself as the union for people in insecure jobs.

It found three quarters of platform gig economy workers were having to increase their working hours due to the cost-of-living crisis.

Its research, based on a small survey of 266 gig workers, suggests that about half of respondents had seen a reduction in their monthly pay.

Among those who responded, some said they were earning hundreds of pounds less each month.

The TUC says it is difficult to obtain data about gig economy workers because they're described as self-employed, making understanding the problems facing the workforce a challenge.

Deliveroo says there has been a small decline in the number of orders on the app towards the end of 2022.

Shaf and Atlanta both say on their current pay they'd struggle to afford to live on their own, but neither plan to leave the industry any time soon.

Last year, some couriers held a demonstration calling for better pay and safety and Deliveroo responded to say the vast majority were happy with the firm.

A spokesperson told BBC Newsbeat it was proud to offer flexible work to 90,000 riders in the UK and that it had recently signed an agreement with the GMB Union to guarantee riders the national living wage.

The BBC also contacted Uber, which said the "vast majority" if its couriers were satisfied with their experience on the app.

"However we regularly engage with couriers to look at how we can improve their experience," the company added.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Macron and his wife to provide 'scientific photographic evidence' that she is a real woman
US Tech Giants Pledge Billions to UK AI Infrastructure Following Starmer's Call
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
DeepMind and OpenAI Achieve Gold at ‘Coding Olympics’ in AI Milestone
SEC Allows Public Companies to Block Investors from Class-Action Lawsuits
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Federal Reserve Cuts Rates by Quarter Point and Signals More to Come
Effective and Impressive Generation Z Protest: Images from the Riots in Nepal
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Sam Altman sells the 'Wedding Estate' in Hawaii for 49 million dollars
Trump: Cancel quarterly company reports and settle for reporting once every six months
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
US Launches New Pilot Program to Accelerate eVTOL Air Taxi Deployment
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Hong Kong Industry Group Calls for HK$20 Billion Support Fund to Ease Property Market Stress
Joe Biden’s Post-Presidency Speaking Fees Face Weak Demand amid Corporate Reluctance
Charlie Kirk's murder will break the left's hateful cancel tactics
Kash Patel erupts at ‘buffoon’ Sen. Adam Schiff over Russiagate: ‘You are the biggest fraud’
Homeland Security says Emmy speech ‘fanning the flames of hatred’ after Einbinder’s ‘F— ICE’ remark
Charlie Kirk’s Alleged Assassin Tyler Robinson Faces Death Penalty as Charges Formally Announced
Actor, director, environmentalist Robert Redford dies at 89
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
JD Vance Says There Is “No Unity” with Those Who Celebrate Charlie Kirk’s Killing, and he is right!
Trump sues the 'New York Times' for an astronomical sum of 15 billion dollars
Florida Hospital Welcomes Its Largest-Ever Baby: Annan, Nearly Fourteen Pounds at Birth
U.S. and Britain Poised to Finalize Over $10 Billion in High-Tech, Nuclear and Defense Deals During Trump State Visit
China Finds Nvidia Violated Antitrust Laws in Mellanox Deal, Deepens Trade Tensions with US
US Air Force Begins Modifications on Qatar-Donated Jet Amid Plans to Use It as Air Force One
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
Elon Musk Retakes Lead as World’s Richest After Brief Ellison Surge
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
London Daily Podcast: London Massive Pro Democracy Rally, Musk Support, UK Economic Data and Premier League Results Mark Eventful Weekend
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Musk calls for new UK government at huge pro-democracy rally in London, but Britons have been brainwashed to obey instead of fighting for their human rights
Elon Musk responds to post calling for the murder of Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk: 'Either we fight back or they will kill us'
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
USA: Office Depot Employees Refused to Print Poster in Memory of Charlie Kirk – and Were Fired
Proposed U.S. Bill Would Allow Civil Suits Against Judges Who Release Repeat Violent Offenders
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
Anesthesiologist Left Operation Mid-Surgery to Have Sex with Nurse
×