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How We Pay Our Drivers

Kelsie McMahon

May 7, 2019

Have you ever thought about driving with an on-demand ride-share company? The gig comes with a lot of benefits:

  • You’re your own boss
  • You set your own hours
  • You choose the jobs you want to accept
  • You can use your vehicle to make an income

Sounds like a sweet deal, but working for some of the ride-share companies out there can also have significant drawbacks. Many of the existing ride-share companies are focused on picking up and dropping off people.

To make money, you’ll need to work when most people are looking for rides — this typically means driving late at night or early mornings. The payment rates and terms of ride-share companies can be confusing and lack transparency, making it difficult to predict how much money you’ll make per mile or hour.

For short trips and minimum fare rides, you’ll end up making very little profit — or possibly even lose money. Plus, people can be unpredictable passengers.

If you’re interested in making a living (or just a little extra money) as a driver, but have concerns about these drawbacks, then you might want to look into driving with Dispatch.

How It Works

Dispatch is an on-demand courier service that uses an app similar to Uber or Lyft, but as a Dispatch driver, you’ll be delivering packages instead of people. Here’s how it works:

  • A customer requests a delivery from their screen or smartphone
  • A message is then sent to drivers in the area, and you, as the driver, can decide if you want to make the delivery
  • The app’s GPS will provide you with the best route options — of course, you’re your own boss, so you can take a better route if you know one
  • You pick up the package
  • You deliver the package and either collect a signature on your phone or take a picture of the package at the door
  • And then you get paid — it’s that easy

Aside from delivering packages instead of people, what really sets Dispatch apart from other ride-share companies is the way we treat our drivers.

Fair, Transparent Payment

We take pride in treating our drivers with respect and we want the Dispatch driving experience to be profitable and predictable. This way you can make a real living with honest pay, schedule your time, and budget your income.

The key for us: transparency. For every delivery, we pay a flat per-mile rate to our drivers.

This makes it much easier for you to calculate exactly how much money you’ll make on each delivery and plan your schedule to meet your income goals. Drivers are paid per mile and based on the location, service level, and vehicle type.

Payment terms for other ride-share companies are much more complex, making it challenging to calculate how much you’ll make for a trip (or in a day). For example, Uber fares are calculated by adding up the base fare, the time and distance of the trip, surge pricing, tolls, and other fees. After this total is determined, Uber takes a cut of the total fare, making it impossible for a driver to know for certain how much they’ll make on a trip.

We also eliminate the risk of low profits for minimum fare rides by charging a higher minimum fare than other ride-share companies ($15 minimum for Dispatch vs. about $4 for Uber or $3.50 for Lyft). This means that you’ll make more money on short trips than you would be if you were driving for other companies, and we can help ensure that you’ll make a profit on each and every delivery. We also cover your commercial liability insurance. 

The schedule for delivering packages is also much more predictable than if you’re driving people. In the courier business, most of the pickups and deliveries are done during normal business hours. This means you’ll have greater control over when you work. No more late nights spent picking up passengers at bar close. Unless you want to drive for another ride-share company in addition to Dispatch, of course. That’s another benefit of working for us. Our drivers are truly independent. You have no obligation to drive exclusively for us and you’re welcome to take work outside of Dispatch.

We do all of this to be as transparent as possible about how much you’ll be paid and what your day-to-day will look like. There are never any extra or hidden fees that will come out of your earnings. How much income you make is up to you.

Interested in driving with Dispatch? Sign up today!

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