Two in three of the self-employed drivers who collect and deliver cars for remarketing giant BCA are battling to win a “employee” legal status that would give them better rights such as the national minimum wage.
Law firm Leigh Day is fighting to get better rights for the gig economy workers, self-employed independent contractors who are responsible for inspecting and transporting ex-lease cars to destinations across the UK, including to motor auction hubs owned by BCA, according to Leigh Day.
BCA uses 1,200 of these drivers, and Leigh Day says it is representing 800 of them.
Employment tribunals in 2023 found the written contract did not genuinely reflect the actual agreement between the parties; there was a risk of punishment if the drivers did not work when expected; pay was set by BCA and was non-negotiable; and the drivers were specifically recruited by BCA to work as an integral part of its operations.
BCA failed to win an appeal on the decision, but Leigh Day reports that its clients are still being denied “basic rights”.
BCA, owned by Constellation Automotive Group which also owns Webuyanycar.com, Cinch and Marshall Motor Group, declined to comment.
Gabriel Morrison, a solicitor in the employment team at Leigh Day, said: “At the Employment Tribunal, the judge was unequivocal in finding that our clients were workers for BCA, specifically noting that he ‘did not think this was an uncertain, marginal or borderline case’. Despite this, BCA continue to adopt their gig economy model in the face of this judgment, denying our clients the basic rights that they are entitled to.”
Leigh Day cited the example of a driver called Ian Williams, who said his working day routinely lasted 14 hours, during which he is paid £20 per job, with an extra £8 if a car requires inspection. He does not receive pay for the time travelling between collections and deliveries.
He does not receive holiday pay for any time he takes off and calculates that his pay regularly falls below the current national minimum wage of £10.42 an hour.