Review: GoShare delivery gigs can pay well, but get insurance first
What: GoShare connects people who have trucks and muscles with people who need help with moving or delivery.
Expected pay: $33 to $67 per hour, plus tips, minus expenses
Husl $core: $$$$ (scale of 5)
Where: Select major cities
Uber and Lyft used to be the undisputed leaders in providing jobs for independent contractors who wanted to drive for a living. The coronavirus changed that.
Requirements for drivers:
- Be over the age of 18 and have a valid state-issued ID
- Be authorized to work in the U.S.
- A car, truck or cargo van
- An iPhone or Android capable of running the latest GoShare app
- A driver’s license and clean driving and criminal record
- Auto and health insurance
- Ability to lift and carry objects of up to 75 pounds
- Must pay for and pass a background check. Cost is $45 ($150 in New York). This fee is nonrefundable. No felonies or violent misdemeanors in the last seven years.
Requirements for helpers:
- Be over the age of 18 and have a valid state-issued ID
- Be authorized to work in the U.S.
- Pass a background check (which you pay for, as noted above). No felonies or violent misdemeanors in the last 7 years.
- Ability to lift and carry items weighing up to 75 pounds
- An iPhone or Android capable of running the latest GoShare app
- Must have a checking account to receive direct deposits
Review: GoShare’s payment formula promises a great hourly wage — as much as $67, depending on the type of vehicle you drive. “Helpers,” who don’t need their own vehicle, earn between $33 and $47 per hour.
Drivers and helpers keep 100% of their tips.
The job is clearly physically demanding, but for someone with a clean background and serious muscles, this could be a great opportunity to make vastly more than minimum wage.
Why, then, do we give this opportunity just four $$$$? Because there are a few items in the terms that concern us.
One is that drivers and helpers pay for their own background check upfront, and that fee is nonrefundable. Second is that if you break any of the customer’s things, you could be liable for up to $1,000 in damages.
Naturally, you’re going to be careful, but stuff happens. It would be a serious bummer to sign on for a two-hour job, for which you get about $120, and end up owing several times your pay because something was damaged.
Recommendations: We like lucrative work but suggest you buy your own commercial lines insurance policy to cover accidental damages before signing up with this app. You can also find lucrative moving jobs with Truxx, BuddyTruk and HitchIt.
What drivers say: Drivers have given the app great reviews; however, those reviews are all on GoShare-controlled accounts, so maintain an ounce of skepticism. You can find the video testimonials at https://www.goshare.co/helpers/.
Kristof is the editor of SideHusl.com, an independent site that reviews hundreds of money-making opportunities in the gig economy.
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