As customers, it’s all about saving money where you can. We all have at some point wanted free pizza within 30 minutes like Paresh Rawal did in Phir Hera Pheri and have somehow done. But I’m sure we have always taken the delivery boys for granted.

For us, a delivery boy is just a nameless, faceless person who exists solely to deliver our food. They are often at the end of your rage if they fail to deliver your order on time, but have we ever thought about what goes behind the scenes?

Delivery boys are on the end of various accidents.

What goes behind those 30 minutes of delivery time

The following incident was shared by the Kolkata Traffic Police on Facebook highlighting a person’s experience with a delivery boy:

“As a customer sometimes we get excited that when you see a promo “If the Pizza doesn’t come in next 30 minutes it is free”. But this Sunday I experienced a situation which I wanted to share with all of you.

I was driving with my family. I was standing in one of the traffic signals, just beside me came a young guy who had a food order to deliver, the signal turned green and in no moment, this guy rushed his bike crisscrossed me, was about to overtake and fly to deliver his order, but he skidded and came right under my car, fortunately it was a near miss.

I came out of my car, was really upset with him. I shouted at him ”What is wrong with you, you would have died?

He replied with a lot of pain, “Sir, sorry I have to deliver this order I got delayed because of traffic, so I was rushing through.” I gave him some basic first aid and he disappeared in no time.

I asked myself, I cannot risk a life and support companies that promise me to deliver a free order if it’s getting delayed. I value and respect life.

I just wanted to pass my thoughts to you and request to please pay for your food order even if it gets delayed. These young guys risk their lives to get a hot Pizza sometimes even risking their lives.”


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A day in the life of a delivery boy

For starters, small courtesy’s such as offering them a glass of water goes a long way.

We often complain if our order gets delayed or if the pizza is not hot enough. But we may not realise the big picture when due to some unforeseeable circumstances such as traffic these guys are at the end of the blame.

From facing the frustration from our side they then have to suffer the same from the manager’s side for no fault of their own. They are often penalised if we complain that our food was delivered late.

Once my Dominos pizza came 15 minutes late and of course like any other customer I asked for a deduction in price. Being concerned about the delivery guy, I asked him whether this had any effect on his pay. To my relief, he assured me that at no point he is at the end of a pay cut.

The likes of Swiggy and Uber Eats have significantly improved the conditions for these delivery boys

Instances of rash driving to deliver the order within the stipulated time often makes these delivery boys reckless drivers, often putting their life at risk. I wonder whether they are provided with any insurance.

The scheme of insurance is starting to be introduced with the likes of Swiggy, Uber Eats etc. But the stipulated amount of Rs. 1-5 lakh with a medical reimbursement of Rs. 30,000 isn’t enough when they are at a heightened risk.

Pay is usually incentive based mostly comprising of the number of deliveries you make. A delivery boy can earn an average of Rs. 20,000 per month which again is less, inspite of the increase in their income during recent years because of increased competition.

While other reimbursements such as petrol are paid, they are often the victim of poor facilities. The motorcycles they often travel in are usually second-hand with no suspensions making them accident prone.

Although things have vastly improved over time, there is this increased risk to their life just because we can’t wait for more than 30 minutes and because a pizza is costlier than the life of a delivery boy.


Image Credits: Google Images

Sources: Kolkata Police, Livemint, TOI 


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