In late 2021, a pizza delivery driver who worked at a Pizza Hut store owned and operated by Hallrich Incorporated/North Coast Pizza, Inc. filed a lawsuit claiming the company did not pay its delivery drivers enough to cover the vehicle expenses the drivers incur.
The plaintiff alleged that the company pays delivery drivers a per-mile rate that is too low to cover the drivers’ actual vehicle expenses. For example, the plaintiff alleged that the company reimbursed her $.28 per mile.
In the lawsuit, the drivers claimed that the law requires the company to reimburse them at the IRS standard business mileage rate, which is currently $.625 per mile—more than double what the company is alleged to have paid. The plaintiff sought to represent all of the delivery drivers who work for the company in Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Indiana in a collective action.
This is an unfortunately common practice in the pizza delivery industry. Our firm has successfully represented multiple classes of pizza delivery drivers around the country in similar cases, recovering over $30 million for drivers in the process.
The drivers claims will go to private arbitration.
On September 15, 2022, a U.S. District Court in Ohio ruled that a group of pizza delivery drivers employed by the Hallrich and/or North Coast Pizza, Inc. Pizza Hut stores must assert their unpaid minimum wage claims in individual arbitration.
As we have explained on our blog before (link to pizza arbitration blog), arbitration is sometimes preferred by individual drivers seeking to recover their unpaid wages. The process can sometimes be faster. And, because there are relatively small amounts of money at stake (as compared to a class action), the drivers have good settlement leverage. Our firm has helped some individual delivery drivers recover tens of thousands of dollars through the arbitration process. Disclaimer: Obviously, past results are no guarantee of future results and each case is different, so drivers interested in learning more about the possible value of their own claims should contact our office for a free, confidential consultation.
What arbitration lacks is unfortunately what the class action process provides—the ability to seek broad enforcement of the law for all of the company’s workers.
In arbitration, each driver must agree to file a claim in order to seek their lost wages. The process for doing that is simple, however. You can contact our office to answer a few questions and provide information about your employment, and we will evaluate whether we can proceed with filing your claim through an online filing process.
Because the drivers’ claims are subject to arbitration, any Hallrich/North Coast delivery drivers who want to pursue claims for unpaid wages and unreimbursed vehicle expenses must do so through a private, individual arbitration process. Team Honey Badger drivers who want to pursue claims for unpaid wages and unreimbursed vehicle expenses must do so through a private, individual arbitration process.
Biller & Kimble has already helped a number of Hallrich drivers recover unpaid wages and damages through the arbitration process. Interested drivers should contact our office to learn how by filling out the contact form on this page.
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ADVERTISING ONLY: The information on this blog is not, nor is it intended to be, legal advice. You should consult an attorney for individual advice regarding your own situation.
Past results obtained by Biller & Kimble, LLC are no guarantee of future results. Each case or matter is different and must be judged on its own merits.