Delivering for Stuart: the full guide
Stuart pays a base fee per delivery set by distance and vehicle, multiplies it at busy times, pays for long waits at pick-up, and pays weekly. It also has a written substitution policy and regular face checks. Here is how each part works.
Correct for the 2026/27 tax year. Last checked 29/09/2026.
Stuart delivers for restaurants, grocers and shops rather than running its own consumer app, so the orders arrive as invitations from clients rather than from a marketplace. The pay rules are some of the most clearly written of any platform, and worth reading once properly.
Joining
- Fill in the application: name, address, bank details and proof of right to work.
- Watch the onboarding videos and pass the quizzes on road safety, equipment and pay.
- Wait for Stuart to verify your documents.
- Buy equipment from the Stuart shop or use your own if it meets the standard.
- Pass the background check with Sterling. If it fails, the cost of the check is not refunded.
- Download the Courier App once approved.
Some cities have a waiting list, and some already have all the car couriers they need, so a request to switch from bike to car can be refused. You must always use the transport type registered on your account. Using a different one is a breach that can end the account.
How earnings are built
| Part | How it works |
|---|---|
| Base fee | Set by city, transport type and distance from pick-up to drop-off |
| Multiplier | Multiplies the base fee at busy times, places or in bad weather; the value at the pick-up applies |
| Waiting at pick-up | 17p a minute from 20 to 30 minutes after arriving |
| Client cancels | A cancellation fee if they cancel more than 2 minutes after you accepted |
| Return | A delivery fee for both legs; only the return earns a multiplier |
| Multi-drop | One fee based on the total distance for all the drops |
You can cancel an order yourself right after accepting it or once you are at the pick-up, but a self-cancellation is unpaid, even after a long wait. Waiting time pay and a cancellation fee are never both paid on one order.
Getting paid
The week runs Monday to Sunday and is paid on Tuesday, by midnight. The Statement of Earnings arrives by email from payments.uk@stuart.com, opens with a code sent to your email, and can be downloaded for 365 days. There is an annual statement too. Download both; they are what you file from.
Through Onsi, Stuart's free benefits partner, you can take up to £200 a time of the previous day's earnings from 10am. One withdrawal a month is free and each one after that costs £2. That fee is a business cost.
Your statement also shows equipment deductions if you bought kit through Stuart. Those are business expenses as well.
Insurance
A motor vehicle needs hire and reward cover for food and courier work, with Stuart named as a work provider on the policy. Zego is the insurer most Stuart couriers use; a pay-as-you-go Zego policy has to be linked to your Stuart account through the same email address. A request to update insurance is refused if the policy is not active or does not show hire and reward.
Stuart's free StuProtect cover, through Onsi, adds earnings protection for ill health, a digital GP and physio service, up to six counselling sessions, and accident cover during a delivery and for 30 minutes afterwards, which pays for permanent disablement, injury from an unprovoked assault, and accidental death. Register for it in the Onsi app.
Substitutes, face checks and suspensions
Since 11 March 2024 you can appoint a substitute, but only in advance, using the substitution form in the app. The substitute has to be 18 or over, have the right to work, have no criminal convictions, use the same transport type, carry hire and reward cover where needed, and never have had a Stuart account suspended or closed. You pay them and you are answerable for what they do on your account.
Every courier completes face verification through Checkout.com: an ID document and a short video the first time, then a video every two weeks, with 20 minutes to finish it once opened. Failing twice or letting the link expire twice can block the account.
Since December 2025 repeated poor service, such as detours, cancellation abuse, GPS spoofing or the wrong transport type, brings warnings and then a temporary suspension, after which you are re-approved automatically. Termination is for strong evidence of fraud or serious breaches, and Stuart says it will never end a partnership because a courier opts out of alcohol deliveries for religious reasons.
Tax
You are self-employed. Turnover is your final earnings before any deductions Stuart made for equipment, so add those deductions back as expenses rather than leaving them out. Claim your miles at 55p in a car for the first 10,000, 24p on a motorbike or scooter, or 20p on a bicycle. If you are VAT registered, the statement shows VAT separately.
Sources
Common questions
- When does Stuart pay couriers?
- Stuart works Monday to Sunday and pays the week's earnings on the following Tuesday, arriving by midnight. The Statement of Earnings comes by email the same day. Through Onsi you can withdraw earnings from 10am the next day instead.
- Does Stuart pay for waiting at the restaurant?
- Yes, where it has been rolled out. Waiting time pay starts after 20 minutes at the pick-up and runs until 30 minutes, at 17p a minute, so at most ten paid minutes. After 30 minutes you can ask support to cancel for a fee instead.
- What is a Stuart multiplier?
- A multiplier raises the base delivery fee by a set factor, for example £3.20 at x1.5 becomes £4.80. It depends on location, time, demand, weather, the number of stops and distance, and the value at the pick-up address is the one that applies.
- Can I use a substitute on Stuart?
- Yes, since 11 March 2024, but you must register them on the substitution form before they work. They must be 18 or over, have the right to work, hold hire and reward cover if needed, and use the same transport type as your account.
About the author
Issac Davies, Founder of JoltMile
Issac Davies drives for gig apps in the UK and built JoltMile to show drivers what a shift actually pays once fuel, insurance and tax come off. Every guide here is checked against HMRC and gov.uk guidance, and is information rather than tax advice.
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Shift log · True hourly rate · Estimated tax: the JoltMile app works this out from your own shifts. Your first 10 shifts are free.
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