Who actually employs Amazon delivery drivers
The vans with the smile on the side are almost never driven by Amazon employees. Last-mile delivery in the UK runs through two separate programmes, and the one you pick changes everything about the job: who pays you, whether you're employed, and what vehicle you drive.
Delivery Service Partners (DSPs)
A DSP is an independent local company that holds a contract to deliver from an Amazon delivery station. The DSP recruits the drivers, runs the vans and sets the pay. Some DSPs employ drivers on payroll; many take drivers on as self-employed contractors, so read the advert carefully. The van, fuel and insurance are normally supplied, you load at the station in the morning and work a full route of stops, and pay is typically quoted as a day rate.
Because every DSP hires under its own name, the adverts don't say "Amazon" in the employer field. Look for "Delivery Service Partner", "DSP" or "delivering on behalf of Amazon" in the description. That's how the listings below are matched.
Amazon Flex
Flex is Amazon's own self-employed scheme. You use your own car or van, book delivery blocks of a few hours in the Flex app, collect parcels from a station and deliver them, and you're paid per block rather than per parcel. Nobody rosters you; you take the blocks you want. You cover your own fuel, wear and insurance, so the headline rate is not the take-home rate.
What Amazon does employ directly
Fulfilment centre, sortation and delivery-station roles are on Amazon's own payroll, but they're warehouse jobs, not driving. Amazon also runs a Freight Partner programme for HGV operators, which is a business relationship rather than a driver job.
What you need
- DSP roles: a full UK or EU driving licence, usually with six points or fewer, the right to work in the UK, a background check, and the fitness to handle parcels up to around 23kg all day. Many DSPs set a minimum age of 21 for insurance.
- Amazon Flex: be 18 or over with a full licence, your own roadworthy car or van, a smartphone that runs the app, and motor insurance that covers delivery work. Standard social, domestic and pleasure cover doesn't.
- Self-employed either way: you'll register with HMRC and file a Self Assessment return. Mileage, phone and insurance are allowable expenses, so keep records from day one.
How the pay works
DSP day rates are set by each partner and vary by region and by whether the role is employed or self-employed, so compare adverts rather than assuming a national figure. Flex pays a fixed amount per block, shown before you accept it. Listings on this page show the pay the employer advertised, and our courier pay breakdown walks through what's left after costs.
How to apply
For DSP work, apply to the partner directly through its advert, including any listed below. For Flex, applications go through the Flex app and website, with a waiting list in busy areas. If you're weighing up self-employment for the first time, read our delivery driver tax guide before you sign anything.