How do delivery zones work in Food-Ordering.com?

You define delivery zones by postcode or radius. Each zone can have its own delivery charge and minimum order value. When a customer enters their postcode, the system automatically applies the correct delivery fee and checks against the minimum order for their zone. Orders outside all defined zones are declined with a clear message.

Is running your own drivers cheaper than Deliveroo?

In most cases, yes — at sufficient order volume. Deliveroo charges 30–35% commission per order. A £20 order costs £6–7 in commission. Employing or contracting a driver at £12/hour who completes 4 deliveries per hour costs £3/delivery plus fuel. The crossover point depends on your volume, driver wage rates, and order values — but most takeaways delivering more than 50 orders per week find own-fleet cheaper.

Can I run both aggregator delivery and my own drivers?

Yes, and many businesses do. Aggregators provide discovery and handle delivery logistics for new customers. Your own ordering system with own drivers captures repeat customers at much lower cost per order. Over time, migrating regular customers to your direct channel — where you control both ordering and delivery — maximises margin.

Delivery Driver Management for Restaurants — Own Drivers vs Aggregators

Q: How is driver assignment handled?

Food-Ordering.com supports manual driver assignment from the management dashboard. When a delivery order is ready, the manager assigns it to an available driver. The driver receives the delivery address and order details. For higher volumes, third-party driver management or dispatch software can integrate via the order export API.

Why own-fleet delivery matters

Deliveroo and Uber Eats handle delivery logistics — but at 30–35% commission per order. On a £20 order, you pay £6–7 to the platform, and the customer is theirs, not yours. You have no direct relationship with the customer, no data, and no ability to move them to a cheaper channel.

Running your own delivery drivers via your own ordering system restores the customer relationship, retains full customer data, and typically costs less per delivery at moderate to high volume — even accounting for driver wages and fuel.

Delivery zone management

Postcode and radius zone configuration

Define delivery zones by postcode area or radius from your location. Each zone has its own delivery charge and minimum order value — inner zone might be £1.99 delivery, outer zone £2.99, with a higher minimum order for the longer run.

Automatic zone detection at checkout

When a customer enters their postcode, the system instantly checks their zone, applies the correct delivery fee, and verifies against the minimum order. Orders outside all delivery zones are declined cleanly — no false expectations set.

Zone operating hours

Delivery zones can be active only during certain hours. If you stop delivering after 10pm, the outer zone switches to collection-only automatically — no manual intervention needed.

Driver assignment and dispatch

Management dashboard order queue

All incoming delivery orders appear in the management dashboard in real time. When a delivery is ready, the manager assigns it to an available driver with one click. The driver receives the delivery address and order details.

Customer delivery notification

When an order is dispatched, the customer receives an automated notification with the estimated delivery time. This reduces "where's my order?" calls significantly — the most common source of incoming calls for takeaways.

Own-fleet vs aggregator economics

Metric	Deliveroo / Uber Eats	Own drivers
Commission per order (£20 order)	£6–7 (30–35%)	£0
Driver cost per delivery (£12/hr, 4 del/hr)	£0 (included in commission)	£3 + fuel (~£0.50)
Net delivery cost per order	£6–7	~£3.50
Customer data ownership	Platform owns it	You own it
Repeat customer channel	Aggregator app	Your direct channel

At 4 deliveries per driver hour, own-fleet delivery costs roughly £3.50 per order all-in vs £6–7 for aggregator commission. The saving compounds with volume — and you own the customer relationship.

When to use aggregators vs own fleet

Aggregators are useful for — new customer discovery, areas outside your normal delivery radius, periods when you don't have drivers available, special promotions to new audiences
Own fleet is better for — repeat customers, high-volume periods where you want full margin, keeping customer data, building a direct relationship
Best practice — use aggregators to acquire customers, then actively move them to your direct channel with bag inserts, QR code stickers, and first-order-direct incentives (one-off, not ongoing incentivised reviews)

Frequently asked questions

How do delivery zones work?

You define zones by postcode or radius, each with its own delivery charge and minimum order. The system detects the customer's zone automatically at checkout and applies the right pricing.

How is driver assignment handled?

Manually from the management dashboard — assign available drivers to ready orders with one click. For higher volumes, the order export API supports integration with third-party dispatch tools.

Is own-fleet delivery cheaper than Deliveroo?

At sufficient volume, yes. Deliveroo charges 30–35% commission (£6–7 on a £20 order). Own-fleet costs approximately £3.50 per delivery at £12/hr with 4 deliveries/hr. The crossover is typically around 30–50 deliveries per week.

Can I run both aggregator and own-fleet delivery?

Yes. Most takeaways do. Aggregators acquire new customers; own fleet captures repeat orders at lower cost. Actively migrate regular customers to your direct channel over time.

Full delivery management included in the licence

Zone management, driver assignment, customer notifications — all part of the standard Food-Ordering.com licence at no extra cost.

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