Considering a Switch to EV? Read this First!

We're all feeling the blow of gas prices going up these days, there's no doubt about that! However, just because fuel prices have gone up doesn't necessarily mean that it's a bad time to be a delivery driver. In fact, this can offer plenty of new opportunities to consider for your delivery driving goals ' and one such option you may have considered is switching to an EV (electric vehicle). However, before you switch to an EV for your deliveries, we strongly recommend you consider the different factors we have laid out in today's guide to help you find out more. After all, there are plenty of great options available, not just switching to an EV. Still, you should consider these carefully to find the right one for you.

SWITCHING TO AN EV FOR DELIVERY DRIVING: IS IT WORTH IT?

Have you been planning to switch to an electric vehicle for your delivery driving work? If so, it's worth considering this decision carefully, since the answer may not always be quite as simple as you seem. EVs aren't always an ideal solution for every gig driver, after all.

The Benefits of Electric Vehicles

There's definitely a lot to love about electric vehicles. And, in our modern world, with gas prices often jumping above $4.50, there's rarely been a better time to consider whether an EV might work for you. In addition to being cheaper to run, EVs can also provide a myriad of additional benefits, which may include the following points:

• EVs are cleaner and more environmentally friendly than traditional vehicles
• You won't experience any congestion charges when switching to EV (depending on your city)
• EVs have reduced noise pollution while making deliveries, ensuring your customers aren't disturbed
• May be easier to maintain and upkeep, which could help reduce the amount of time you spend off the road with your vehicle at the garage!

These are just a few of the most notable benefits of electric vehicles, which naturally could be well worth considering. However, we also recommend that you take care to ensure an electric vehicle is a right option for you ' since, in many cases, they may not be ideal.

The Drawbacks of Electric Vehicles

While electric vehicles can offer benefits for affordability, they also come with several notable drawbacks that can make them less suitable to run. Some of the main drawbacks of electric vehicles include:

• Highly expensive to purchase compared to many other vehicles, which may mean that it takes longer to recoup the investment you've made
• Delivery driving with an electric vehicle requires more planning, as you'll likely need to ensure the car is fully charged before starting to make deliveries ' charging up an EV is incredibly slow, and not all gas stations will have an EV charging point either
• The cost of energy is also rising, which means that you won't be able to fully offset the cost of running your vehicle while making deliveries.
• Some electric vehicles may be less effective for delivery driving when the weather turns cold. This may mean that you are more limited regarding how many deliveries you can make in the winter months ' which, naturally, may also limit the number of deliveries that you can complete.

In short, electric vehicles can be highly effective for delivery drivers with DoorDash, GrubHub, UberEats, and so on. However, it is important to consider the aforementioned drawbacks since many delivery drivers will find that the investment in an EV doesn't offer enough benefits to justify the costs.

Are EVs a Good Choice for Delivery Drivers?

Overall, if you've always wanted to own an electric vehicle, you could definitely do well while delivery driving. However, if you're looking to increase the profitability of your deliveries, and haven't otherwise been planning to buy an electric vehicle anyway, it may not be the right option for you. The substantial price tag of an electric vehicle often means you'll spend thousands more upfront just to buy the car, which could take months to earn back depending on how often you complete deliveries.

Alternatives to Investing in an EV for Delivery Drivers

Did you know that there are other great alternatives to cut your fuel use when delivery driving? The most obvious of these is to switch to a more energy-efficient vehicle, such as a motorbike. Indeed, these are often much cheaper to run than a traditional car and so could cut your fuel bills significantly.

Furthermore, we should also point out here that you could otherwise cut your mileage by streamlining deliveries; you'll burn more gas doing multiple journeys than by combining trips into one with a short detour! So, rather than completing orders one at a time, looking for ways to streamline orders could be a valuable option.

And don't forget, DoorDash allows its dashers 10% cashback on fuel expenses when they use the DasherDirect card to pay. As such, if you decide that an EV isn't for you, you can still save money on your gas simply by using the DasherDirect card. However, this should only be used for fuel that you use while driving, and you should not use this for your personal gas use. In addition to this, you may also be able to reclaim mileage costs as an expense when submitting your taxes. So, overall, you may not lose out as much as you might expect.

INCREASE YOUR INCOME TO OFFSET HIGHER EXPENSES WITH PARA

At this point, we've been looking at some of the key things you need to know about switching to electric vehicles as delivery drivers. However, it's important to consider here that cutting down your running costs is only part of the solution. Indeed, if you want to earn more gig work, you still need to ensure you're getting fair, high-value deliveries that don't leave you making a paltry average income per hour.

Remember: the average income per hour with delivery apps varies hugely. Plus, not all delivery apps offer comparable services. For example, while GrubHub and UberEats excel in providing reliable, regular orders, their average hourly rate is much lower. GrubHub often averages around $12 per hour before tips. Meanwhile, UberEats and PostMates fall at around $15 per hour each. Finally, DoorDash usually offers average rates of around $20 per hour and holds almost 40% of the total delivery market.

In short: none of these are overly amazing hourly rates, considering the average US hourly rate is about $29. However, this pay will vary significantly with factors such as promotions, tips, and so on. With this thought in mind, the importance of taking on smarter orders is huge. Luckily, the Para app, as your gig HQ, enables this.

How to Increase Income with Para

Did you know that Para is one of the best tools to ensure you can earn more with DoorDash and delivery apps? Para offers a simple solution for gig drivers to bolster their earnings and create a more lucrative working model, overall.

Tip Estimates

One of the biggest sources of income for delivery drivers comes from tips. However, you often won't know much about how much tip you'll receive until after you've completed an order. Luckily, Para helps make tip estimates easier, so you can know before you go how much an order is worth.

Items List

Knowing what you're collecting before you accept an order is hugely valuable. Not only does allow you to understand the value of the order (and the potential tip value), but it also ensures you have enough room in your delivery bags to accept it! Luckily, Para provides an items list for deliveries. In turn, this helps make managing deliveries more straightforward.

Food Ready by Time

Are you fed up with hanging around for ages waiting for food to be ready? As a delivery driver, idle time is unpaid time. As such, reducing idle time can substantially increase your hourly rate. Knowing when the food is likely to be ready could save around an hour's worth of time per working day, so it's hugely significant.

Property Flagging

Had a bad experience with a restaurant or customer? No problem ' the Para app allows you to flag these individuals, so you don't accidentally return there (helping ensure you're getting the most from every delivery).

Mileage Tracking

It's well worth considering that one of Para's top features is its ability to track your miles for you! In doing so, you can ensure that ' at the end of the year ' you're putting your taxes through accurately, without paying more in tax than you need to. After all, TaxScouts reminds us that delivery drivers can still claim back tax for their fuel use. Considering the price of fuel is getting higher and higher, this could save you a substantial sum of money!

Consider Multiapping to Earn More

To learn more about the differences between the available delivery apps, be sure to check out our review of DoorDash vs GrubHub vs Uber Eats vs PostMates. Still, it's important to note that you can work for all four of these simultaneously. As such, if you truly want to bolster your income, multiapping could be a valuable solution ' which Para supports.

Does Para Genuinely Work?

At this point, we have outlined some of the amazing features of the Para app for delivery drivers. However, you shouldn't just have to take our word for it. As such, be sure to check out Para's Google Play or App Store pages to find out more about the different features it can offer for delivery drivers.

Jordan Aves: 'As a driver, I've constantly had to rely on my instincts and past experiences to choose whether or not to accept an order, especially in cases of sold by the merchant. Far too many times, I've received little to no tip even on some of the biggest orders I've carried. Para allows me to have insight into my routes and possible income and it gives me peace of mind to know I can immediately decline a no-tip order. Of course, sometimes Para isn't 100% accurate - but in that case, you're only getting paid more than estimated.'

Randon Valle: 'I rated the app a while back but I wanted to give an updated review. Despite DoorDash's attempts for Para to refrain from helping drivers, the Para team is still hard at work making things easier for us. Even if they can't show the total amount anymore, you can still see things like subtotals, if the customer gave little to no tip, and the sparkle icon I've seen on every offer given to me is always accurate. All this, and it's free. Godspeed, Para team.'

FINAL THOUGHTS

If you have been looking to offset the losses you've incurred with delivery driving recently, you may have considered switching to an EV. And, of course, electric vehicles can definitely offer numerous benefits that may be well worth considering as part of your final decision. However, we also strongly recommend that you consider this decision carefully.

After all, electric vehicles aren't always an ideal solution and could potentially complicate your delivery driving efforts. So, always do your research before switching to an EV; there are countless other options, such as using the Para drivers app or checking the Para drivers' blog, that can help you earn more with your delivery driving.