What is like being a Brazilian delivery driver in London

They lead difficult lives in the capital, some are undocumented, but their endurance is what keeps them alive

You may have seen them gathered around parks. You may have bumped into them on your way home after work. You may have even heard them speak in a foreign language. With their helmet on, they drive through life delivering your restaurant food orders through thick and thin.

This is the story of a particular demographic of food delivery drivers that is struggling. Competition for orders is fierce and these men and women are willing to do anything to turn their lives around. According to Deliveroo, they’re in their tens of thousands in the UK alone.

It’s hard to pin-point the exact amount of Brazilian delivery drivers who come to Britain, but by speaking to one of them, it’s “a lot”. The Brazilian community in London is in the tens of thousands and amounted to Brazilians who hold other nationalities, the number could be even bigger. Some of them enter the country on a tourist visa and stay here indefinitely, breaking immigration rules. A good number of them hold European Union passports, arriving here before Brexit.

In fact, this is the case with many Brazilians who live in the UK. Our colonial past and heritage allow us to apply for Portuguese, Italian and Spanish passports. So, indeed, it’s very hard to say statistically who is truly from Brazil.

It’s easy, however, to spot them out and about when you speak Brazilian Portuguese. I’m very used to being greeted with a “obrigado (thank you)” when receiving my food orders at home. My order name normally gives away my nationality, so it’s quite helpful. I enjoy this atmosphere of charisma and resilience many of them transpire to have. In many ways, their job seems to be their community.

During the pandemic, filmmaker Dan Emmerson made a beautiful documentary called “Correio (delivery driver)” illustrating exactly this spirit. It follows the lives of Brazilian delivery drivers in London and their routines. Emmerson says he built a relationship with them by reaching out to a few on Instagram, adding that there’s something “uniquely warm” about Brazilians.

There’s also a trend happening at the moment on YouTube where delivery drivers film themselves on the job, sharing the reality behind a tough day at work. I watched a few and came to the obvious conclusion that it’s not easy dealing with rude customers, parking tickets and traffic jams on a daily basis. Their job is sometimes overlooked. Their wages being low and the exhausting working hours on top of it make them practically heroes.

They also face hostility from Asian and Middle Eastern riders, another issue which is commonly known in the community. According to a source, they compete for area domination. If a new driver settles in a specific neighbourhood, they tend to receive threats and abuse from other local drivers – even getting their motorcycles destroyed at times.

This can be catastrophic for some with many having families in the UK and depending solely on their income from companies like Uber Eats and Just Eat. In such tragic instances, they are seen marching in protest for more safety on the streets of London.

When in 2019 Brazilian driver Iderval da Silva who was 46 years old was beaten to death by thugs trying to steal his bike, around 200 drivers paraded through the streets of Westminster to Parliament Square before kneeling in a circle on the green. These are moments when the Brazilian sense of solidarity is palpable.

But there’s also a dark part of this community, which doesn’t come with an inch of pride.

Not long ago, I was invited to be a part of a Brazilian delivery drivers’ London WhatsApp group chat through a friend, and I was shocked with what I saw. Horror stories of motorcycles being burnt down by other fellow couriers, drivers hunting down suspects for motorcycle theft and profiles offering forged motorcycle and moped CBT (Compulsory Basic Training) licenses. It’s a section of the community that is lawless.

The group keeps itself updated with police searches happening in different areas of London, so those who are illegally in the city can dodge the police force unsuspiciously. They also sell contraband tobacco, promoting the multi-million-pound illicit cigarette trade already happening in the black market. Prices sound seductive. A pack with 10 boxes sells for £70, nearly half the average on the high street – making the business of WhatsApp group messaging not only illegal, but lucrative too.

An immigrant story

I was recently introduced to a food delivery driver from Brazil, who I won’t identify. We arrange to meet at Southgate’s The New Crown pub, in North London. She seems very friendly talking about how seemingly calm the neighbourhood is and how work has dried up. She’s one of many who arrive in the UK for better wages and who resort to delivery. “London was not my dream. But my cousin was living here”, she says.

“He was the one who said I should try work on the moped. It’s been 4 years”, she continues. The majority of them arrive in the country to work and then leave. Their working hours are tough, starting sometimes early in the morning and finishing late at night. I’ve been told some work as many as eighty-four hours a week, making an average of £16 per hour.

She talks about the large numbers of drivers from all over the world who arrive in the city on a daily basis and how the tough competition is making it difficult to make ends meet.

“There are companies now lending motorbikes, so you don’t have to go through any verification”, she shares.

She is talking about the big chunk of the community who rents motorcycles clandestinely, avoiding having to confirm their immigration status.

She also mentions illegal drivers rent Uber Eats or Just Eat accounts from drivers who are able to provide identification – a requisite from food delivery companies. The illegal drivers then keep track of their deliveries and receive the cash from those who own the account. 

Account holders frequently scam illegal drivers too, keeping all of their money and worsening their situation.

Drivers work with 3 accounts mostly, each from a different company, and their meeting point is normally outside London’s McDonald’s restaurants – since the majority of orders are made from the chain.

“Sometimes, we work with more than one phone at once to get as many orders as possible”, she says.

“If for some reason, you took too long to make a delivery and you get a bad review, the company will just block you. And I’m, like, man, this is my only job”

There are also other problems faced by illegal drivers. Food delivery companies will randomly ask them to submit an instant photo, another way of confirming who’s making the delivery, forcing them to instantly contact the account holder.

This causes the drivers to waste time, lose money and potentially be blocked out of their accounts. “They’re cancelling accounts very often at the moment”, she says. “If for some reason, you took too long to make a delivery and you get a bad review, the company will just block you. And I’m, like, man, this is my only job”, she says.

Another trick commonly used by drivers to make companies and customers think they’re near the restaurant when assigned an order is to use a fake GPS app on their phone. That way, they can travel miles across town to deliver an order without risk losing their accounts.

“But that backfires”, she says. Traffic is heavy at times and drivers will take a very long time to deliver their orders, causing them to receive a bad rating or, even worse, going way above their maximum delivery time and being penalised for it.

Her status

At the end of our conversation, I can’t help but ask her immigration status in the UK. It hadn’t crossed my mind that it would be anything other than legal, but after putting her to the question, she looks at me silently for a few seconds.

 “I have gone to Brazil and back a few times without getting caught”, she reveals.

“The times I left, I left like anyone else”, she says. “Officers don’t check if I have a visa on my way out”.

I was taken by surprise, but I let her continue.

“When I arrive in Brazil, I apply for a new passport, so I can get in the UK again”, she says. She means having a passport without stamps or history. I feel incredulous, but it makes some sort of sense.

Until recently, UK tourist visas were normally given on the spot to Brazilian citizens, which didn’t require any electronic process.

I feel this is a difficult subject to her, so I stop asking questions. We talk about other minor topics, but I can’t deny I’m moved by the situation.

This is just one of many illegal drivers in London. On WhatsApp, this is confirmed by the astonishing number of drivers interested in forged documentation.

The truth is life as a Brazilian delivery driver in London is far from easy. Their stories are heart-breaking and at times end tragically.

To arrive from far afield and sustain a life in a new country is a battle in itself. There are also the financial, social and legal implications which come with it. It requires a great deal of strength to go through this amount of hardship.

What’s constant in my view, however, and is evidenced is their sheer resilience and determination to fight at all costs to better their very difficult lives.

Feature image by Fellipe Pigatto