Becoming a Grubhub driver is a great way to earn some extra cash. For many people, this type of food delivery job is a flexible alternative to more traditional employment. The online Grubhub application is quick and easy, but the big question for ex-offenders is: Does Grubhub hire felons?
Does Grubhub Hire Felons?
Will Grubhub automatically reject your application because of your felony? Possibly. Grubhub has hired former felons in the past, but that’s no guarantee they’ll hire you. You’ll have a better chance of success with an older felony, while a more recent felony is almost certainly going to be rejected.
It may be the case that current Grubhub drivers with a felony on their record have a felony that doesn’t show up on their background check because the state they drive in limits background checks to 7 years.
Having an application rejected is a common experience for former felons trying to sign up with Grubhub. The best thing to do is take a few minutes to fill out the application and see if you’re approved. The Grubhub application is very quick. It’s entirely online. There’s no interview, and you don’t need to pay any fees to apply.
If Grubhub rejects you because of your felony, you’ve only lost the 10 minutes you spent on the application.
Grubhub Application Steps
Before you sign up for Grubhub, make sure you meet the minimum requirements:
- Have you got a valid ID?
- Is your vehicle insurance up to date?
- Do you have a bank account for direct deposit?
- Have you got 2 years’ driving experience?
- Is your smartphone capable of running the Grubhub app?
The Grubhub application asks you the following prequalification questions:
- Are you at least 18 years old?
- What’s your Zip Code?
- What will be your mode of transportation for making deliveries?
- When would you prefer to work? (mornings, afternoons, evenings)
- Which days of the week do you want to work? (weekdays or weekends)
- How soon are you looking to start?
Next, they need your personal details:
- First and last name
- Address
- Social security number
The next step is verifying your identity:
- Scan the front and back of your ID
- Use the app to take a selfie for your profile picture
Grubhub needs to see your vehicle insurance:
- Upload a photo of your insurance document
- Enter your insurance expiration date
Final Steps:
- Add your direct deposit payment details
- Consent to the background check
Does Grubhub Have a Second-Chance Program For Felons?
Grubhub hasn’t joined any of the well-known second-chance, felon-friendly programs, like the Fair Chance Business Pledge, Ban the Box, or the Second Chance Business Coalition.
They haven’t made their policy on hiring felons public, but applicants with criminal records tend to be unsuccessful.
Because the company doesn’t interview drivers, you won’t have an opportunity to explain the circumstances surrounding your felony or provide references or proof of rehabilitation.
Unfortunately, Grubhub and the food delivery and rideshare platforms as a whole aren’t felon-friendly.
Does Grubhub Carry Out Background Checks On Drivers?
Every driver working on the Grubhub platform has to pass a background check, and the check will often reveal a felony. Even though you’re self-employed and technically your own boss, you still have to follow Grubhub’s rules.
Unlike more traditional self-employment, where your felony won’t matter because you find your own customers and set your own policies, self-employment in the gig economy usually means signing up to a platform to serve someone else’s customers.
The upside is regular work and hassle-free payment. The downside is following all the same rules and requirements as an employee without the guaranteed hours, income, and benefits.
Because drivers make deliveries to customers’ homes, Grubhub needs to make sure that the drivers they approve don’t pose a threat to their customers. To protect their customers and their reputation, they generally won’t approve drivers with felony or misdemeanor convictions, or with certain recent traffic violations.
How Does Grubhub’s Background Check Process Work?
Once you’ve provided your basic information for the Grubhub application, you’ll be asked to give your consent for a background check.
As soon as you consent to the background check, your information is submitted to Checkr, the agency that carries out driver screening for Grubhub.
Checkr searches for misdemeanor and felony criminal convictions, arrest records, and traffic violations. If you pass the background check, you’ll receive a notification and instructions for completing your driver onboarding.
Applicants who fail Grubhub’s background check because of a felony on their record can’t move on to the driver onboarding stage.
Background checks are a type of consumer report, and as such, they’re governed by the Fair Credit Reporting Act. When information about a felony on your background report is used to reject your application, you have the right to receive a free copy of the background report and to dispute any errors it contains.
If Grubhub rejects your application, they’ll provide you with a copy of the report automatically. The report will show you how far back they looked, and you’ll see details about the felony they found.
Other food delivery platforms, including DoorDash, Postmates, and Instacart, also use Checkr for their background checks. If you fail the Checkr screening for one platform, you’ll most likely fail if you apply to other platforms as well.
How Far Back Does Grubhub’s Background Check Go?
Grubhub hasn’t made its background check policy public, so it’s not possible to give a concrete answer that applies to every applicant.
What we can tell you is that Grubhub must comply with state laws governing background checks, and several states have placed limits on how far back a background check can go.
Some states limit background checks to 7 years, others have a 10-year limit, and the rest don’t apply any limits at all.
The following states have a 7-year background check limit, and Grubhub shouldn’t be able to see any older felony offenses:
- California
- Colorado
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Hawaii
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Montana
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Mexico
- New York
- Texas
- Washington
How Often Does Grubhub Run Background Checks?
Grubhub can run driver background checks as often as it wants to. When you sign up with Grubhub, you agree to their contract driver terms and conditions. One of those conditions is agreeing to undergo background checks whenever necessary.
This doesn’t mean Grubhub is going to run a new background check on you every month, but it’s fairly common to receive a background check notification in the Grubhub app every 6 – 12 months or so.
Grubhub wants to maintain a high-quality driver pool, so it checks for criminal offenses and traffic violations regularly.
If you fail a background check, Grubhub will deactivate your account, and you won’t be able to pick up any more work on the platform.
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How Long Does Grubhub’s Background Check Take?
The background check is usually quick, and you should get a notification within 3 to 5 business days telling you that your background check is complete.
Some Grubhub drivers received a completed background check in less than 24 hours, while other background checks can take longer than 5 days because Checkr needs more information.
You can check on the status of your background check by going to the Checkr applicant portal. Enter your social security number, phone number, date of birth,h and email address to access your account.
Which Felony Offenses Make It Harder To Get Hired At Grubhub?
Any felony showing on your background report is going to make it hard to get approval to drive for Grubhub.
You might have a slim chance with a less serious felony, but if you’ve got a felony for a violent offense, a felony for theft, or a felony DUI, it’s doubtful Grubhub will approve you.
Grubhub doesn’t have a shortage of drivers or new applicants, so they can be extremely picky. In many areas, they have so many applicants that they even operate waitlists for approved drivers. Approved drivers can be stuck on the waitlist for over a year before they can start picking up orders from the platform.
When your background report shows a felony, misdemeanor, or certain traffic violations, your application will probably be rejected.
If your application is rejected, you can contact Grubhub at their driver support email address, which is deliverypartners@grubhub.com.
Does Grubhub Drug Test Applicants?
No. There’s no drug test for Grubhub drivers during the application or onboarding process.
Can A Felon Drive On A Friends Grubhub Account?
This is a fairly common question asked by former felons who didn’t pass Grubhub’s background check. They wonder if they can hide their felony by getting a friend or relative to sign up and then make deliveries using that account.
Some people do this and get away with it for a while, but it’s against Grubhub’s terms and conditions, and when they find out, they’ll deactivate the account.
Your profile picture needs to match your ID, and that profile picture is visible to the staff at the restaurants you collect food from and to the customers you deliver to.
When a restaurant employee or customer notices that you aren’t the person shown in the driver profile, they can notify Grubhub, and the account will be deactivated.
What To Do Next
Go through the Grubhub sign-up process and consent to the background check. The worst that can happen is they reject you because of your felony.
If your felony no longer shows up on your background report, and your driving record is clean, you’ll be approved and taken to the next part of the driver onboarding process.