Pizza Hut driver

Status
Not open for further replies.
B

bthest86

Member
Joined
May 7, 2006
Messages
362
Location
Mexico
I just got hired part time as a driver for a Pizza Hut. I start Sunday. I've done some research and according to Wikipedia, delivering pizzas is the 5th most dangerous job in America.

I didn't bother to ask the manager but I'm fairly certain its against Pizza Hut's policy for drivers to carry a gun but I'm bringing one along with me despite their no weapons policy.

The problem is that I've just turned 21 and lack the funds to take CCW classes. I have two rifles that I think are eligible, a PC-9 and an underfolding AK and a one handgun, a Star BM. Personally I'd like to take both the star and the AK. I'm also going to be carrying mace on my person for the duration of my shift.

My question is what are the different ways I can legally carry a rifle or pistol in my car in North Carolina with out a CCP?

Also anyone can offer some tips and dos and don'ts to make this job as safe for me as possible?
 
The rifles aren't going to make you any safer. Odds are you aren't going to be able to legally carry them in the passenger compartment. If I am correct and you need to lock them in the trunk, there is no way you'd ever able to get to them in time.

Even if I'm wrong and you can legally keep them in the passenger compartment, they still won't do you any good. Most pizza robbers will hit you when you are already out of the vehicle. A common ploy is to call in a fake order to a real address (not there's) and ambush you as you approach the house. Unless you are going to carry the rifle with you to to door, it's not going to do you any good.

Pizza Hut does have a "no weapons" policy as well and they will fire you as soon as they figure out you have the rifles in the car.

Btw, the "5th most dangerous job" stat is for *all* sales jobs that require vehicle travel, not just pizza drivers. And, the biggest danger within that category comes from traffic accidents.

I delivered pizza's on and off for years. I never had any problems with robbers or traffic accidents. I think a lot depends on the area where you work though. A gun rights activist I know in Michigan was killed delivery pizzas in Detroit last years. He worked for a "mom and pop" place, carried, and wore body armor, but was still killed. You couldn't get me to work in that area no much how much you paid me.
 
Not a Pizza Hut, but I did manage a Dominos for a while. I carried (TX CHL) when I delivered and I know some of my drivers did. Mind you, this was strictly against the rules.

Here's the skinny on Pizza driving. There are two types of drivers: 1) Those that have been robbed. 2) Those that just started. I NEVER used my weapon in a robbery. It's not your money. It's the stores money. Don't fight for it. 99% of the time the robber is just going to take the money and split. Make it as easy as possible. Give him the pizzas too boot.

Ask your manager about Pizza Huts robbery policy. I'll bet you that if you've been following the rules for cash deposits as the shift is going you won't be held responsible for the money lost in the robbery. Now, if you haven't been following rules and have a big wad of cash on you that you should have deposited, you might get dinged for the amount over what you should have had. Drop down to $20 every time you hit the store, it's worth it.

If you do happen to encounter that 1% robbery, you need your weapon fast and now... not in your car.

If you insist on carrying while delivering get your CHL(CCW whatever your state calls it) and carry your weapon on you. Oh, and be prepared to get fired when the company finds out. If you ever have to use it, the company just found out.
 
Here's the skinny on Pizza driving. There are two types of drivers: 1) Those that have been robbed. 2) Those that just started. I NEVER used my weapon in a robbery. It's not your money. It's the stores money. Don't fight for it. 99% of the time the robber is just going to take the money and split. Make it as easy as possible. Give him the pizzas too boot.
Click to expand...

Duly noted. Hopefully I'll have enough for the classes CCW in a short time. At least I'll have the mace with me at all times.
 
I got curious when you mentioned the Wikipedia info. I assume you ere referring to this quote, "The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics "puts pizza delivery drivers in the category of drivers-sales workers... the fifth most dangerous job in the country just behind pilots-navigators and structural steel workers."
That's actually incorrect. The drivers/sales workers category is as actually statistically the 9th most dangerous, not the 5th. But still 9th or 5th , I guess that doesn't make it much better.

Numbers aside, Trebor is quite right in his initial response post. A rifle isn't going to do you any good, and might wind up putting you in worse situations. I can't think of a situation in or out of your car when you would be able to access and effectively use a rifle in a defensive manner doing that kind of work. If you're able to both get to and use a rifle, then you could have already escaped the situation, and it will not look good in the eyes of the law. And I have no idea what the legalities of even transporting a loaded rifle concealed in a vehicle are in NC. Regardless, it's just the wrong tool for the job no matter how you look at it. The pepper spray and perhaps even better a tazer weapon, if legal in your area, would be far more effective ones.
 
I did deliver for Pizza Hut for a few months about 3 years ago. I pocket carried a .32, a folding knife and a Surefire flashlight. Did alot of deliveries, but never had any problems except for the occassional drunk guy giving monkey shines, but that's about it. Did have some customers that came into the store one night that I thought were going to rob the place, but they left eventually. They must have been there about three hours until closing time.

I delivered for a different place after that for about a year and pocket carried a 9mm, knife and flashlight never had any problems at all.
 
NC handgun open in plain sight, on seat or dash, and better not have tinted windows or might catch a concealed charge anyway... seems like a pain securing a weapon that otherwise needs to be open in plain site, every time you run up a delivery or run in the store...

Check out www.handgunlaw.us for a quick rundown on laws...

I was fortunate when I was younger, drove pizza for awhile, no issues... Remember, if it doesn't feel right, don't go, go back to the store and tell the manager they can send someone else...

Get the CWP if you want to carry, can't help you w/ company policies though, no thoughts there...

I don't agree w/ what another poster said about robbery vics not being hurt. Many of these robberies are being committed by an increasing percentage of younger criminals, that in many cases may be on a power trip, or at the very least not value human life, and may not want to leave a witness.

I had a friend who drove at the same store I drove at, he was beaten severly and carjacked as well. This was probably 15 years ago. I've read many reports over the years, especially recent years where the driver was beaten, killed, and/or car jacked as well, even though they complied.

I don't think you can count on the 'do as they say' theory any more as a rule of thumb in any robbery. I think you have to take each situation as it comes, and many do still turn out 'ok' as far as robberies go, but I think there's enough of a percentage of violent offenders that will cause you some kind of harm no matter what you do, unless you have the ability to flee or defend yourself effectively.

Good luck, and where I'm from a little prayer went a long way for me, I believe....

Karz
 
I delivered for Dominos as well - and always followed the $20 rule. Folks are correct - it's not your money - it's the stores - give them what they want and move on.

I was lucky - I live in a pretty decent part of Utah. The first few times out I was surprised at how friendly folks were in the worst parts of town and how big of a-holes the rich folks were. Don't expect a big tip from the nice houses, the folks in trailer parks are working stiffs like you and me and they know the value of a tip!

It was nice to go home on a Friday night with $70-80 in tips and pick up groceries. I know my wife liked it.

Be safe and take every precaution that you can.
 
Be careful, be aware of your surroundings, and don't put the company's money above your own life.

I've read numerous stories of pizza delivery drivers defending themselves. None were charged, as they were all ruled to be self-defense, and all were summarily fired.
 
I work for a pizza place, but it is a family owned one. Our policy is to not deliver on the bad side of town. I know the chains do not care about this, as one of our workers used to work there, and he got sent everywhere. Luckily, I have never had a problem. Our place, we keep ALL our money with us at all times, and cash out at the end of the night, not the safest thing, but nobody has ever had a problem. Hope you stay safe, and as others have said, its not your money, but its your life.
 
Ex dominoes guy here

I carried, never had any problems except for lousy tippers and one guy who tried to run me off the road.
My co worker shot two robbers though.
 
Wells is not really the topic of discussion pizza delivery is. We will never know for sure what he did or didn't do as he is dead.

Pizza delivery like all jobs carries a level of risk. I would likely open carry. If the store did not allow it I would find another job. Getting killed while delivering pizzas seems not worth it to me.
 
I deliver pizza right now for a small non-chain store. The manager/owner is one of my friend's dad, and he knows I carry. He's got a 1911 in the store for himself :)

A couple of tips:

1: Ask the other drivers and inside-guys about where the bad parts of town are
2: Get yourself a 1,000,000 candle spotlight. You'll need it to see addresses anyways. But you can use it to light up an area and scope it out before you stop your car.
3: Drive by suspected bad areas before you stop to make the delivery. Use the spot and check the house you're going to and the houses around it.
4: Drop off all your money except your $20 bank before you leave.
5: If you come up to a house and you think it may be a fake delivery, call the customer on your cell phone and tell them you're having trouble finding the house, and ask them to turn their porch light on, or flick it on and off a few times. But do this when you can already see the house. If it's a BG using an empty house, he would have had to break in to use the porch light.
 
Putting a gun in the trunk will not be that effective as you will, in most cases not be able to get to your firearm in time. In my case, where I delivered for a couple months, I chose the areas I worked in carefully. In fact, I did not encounter any violent incidents during my time working. The only incident that came close was one which involved a woman. When I delievered to a regular in a plaza, I saw security chasing this Asian woman in her 40s who was totally naked except for her glasses and her handbag. Later on I learnt that she was just mentally unstable and had a habit of appearing naked in public places.
 
I don't think having rifles in the car is going to help you any when delivering pizzas. If you get stopped by the police and they find loaded weapons in your car you may not have a job as a pizza delivery guy very long when your boss finds out. Then again I'm not sure what laws you have in your area regarding transportation on guns in your car. I know when I lived in NM you could carry have guns anywhere in your car without a permit. However here in Arizona they are much more strict about it if you don't have a carry permit.

If you had a carry permit and you could dress in a way that could fully conceal your weapon I'd say carry. However I'd be very careful not to let anyone know and I would only use it to protect my life, like you would any other time you carry. Like others have said carrying a gun to protect your employers money isn't worth the risk, if you get robbed just hand it over and walk away.
 
Since Pizza Hut fired Ronald Honeycutt in 2004 for defending himself, my friends, members of our gun club, and myself have not been back to Pizza Hut. 1 less Pizza Hut now in the local town. Now to close the other one.
 
I called pizza hut a few months back only to discover that they didn't deliver to my location. Knowing that they would deliver to dorms at the campus just across the street I went to the nearest location and asked a manager what the deal was. Turns out one of their drivers had been bashed over the head while delivering to an empty apartment in the complex next door. Poor kid had severe brain injuries.

Thing is its alot easier to just bash a guy in the head from behind than to let him hand you his money. In these type of ambush cases you are often going to find the bg right on top of you if you aren't aware of your surroundings. If you can't afford a ccw and gun, then I recommend something like Ka-Bar's TDI knives which draw very quickly like a pistol. But then again don't bring a knife to a gun fight.
 
Never bring too much change. Sometimes people will call up and order and say "All I have is a $100, or a $50, or whatever.." Just tell them sorry. Also, when carrying the pizzas in a insulated bag, there is usually a loop to hold your hand in. A 6 cell mag lite fits nicely in there and you could very quickly catch someone by suprise with it if necessary. The flashlight comes in handy anyway.
 
Not very helpful, but short answer to the problem is that there's gotta be another job.

Remember that the best personal defense is avoidance, if you know an activity has a high incidence of robbery / assault attached to it, refrain from that activity. Wait tables or something, better money and you don't trash your car, but there's no job worth getting mugged over.
 
I work nights at the Hut also. I am in the process of finding another job, and my 2 week notice will have their gun policy as the reason for leaving. It is insanity. Their "Robbery Prevention" tips include such gems as: "smile", "be polite", "do not resist".
 
I too am a hut worker and I carry. The company is full of stupid policies and rules, you will find that out in short order. As with many of their policies you will forget them and not worry about it unless management gets on to you for not following them. As for the tips on safety; first don't take stupid risk while driving, the people will tip you the same no matter the time it takes 95 percent of the time and a ticket is not worth the tip. Second don't meet people places its a bad idea and half the time they aren't there when you get there so you have to wait which cost you money. Last always trust your gut when something seems wrong, trust me they won't fire if you tell them you didn't feel safe in that situation(might actually be policy), you might get razzed about it but atleast you won't get robbed. As for carring on the job tips, remember concealed means nobody knows you have it. Also get a holster you can tuck a shirt in with and always show up to work with it already tucked, its easier to do at home and the management will be impressed if you show already to work. Always carry the pizza in your non-dominate hand just in case, lastly thin guns are easier to hide. As for leaving the gun in the car, you might as well leave it at home that way its less likely to be stolen.
 
Glock 26
Spare mag
Fox pepper spray
3c maglight
Surefire E2e

I never delivered without it, rules be damned. Be careful.
 
I dont know how much CCW classes cost out your way, but if you can put the cost on a credit card and pay it off as you go that is an option. I am not a big fan of credit cards, but in this case it seems like a worth while option. If it isnt, you could always just carry some other type of defensive device until you could afford a class.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

Y
  • Locked
Another Pizza Hut story with a good ending...
Replies
23
Views
1K
lloveless
L
Yo Mama
  • Locked
Stop Buying Pizza Hut!
Replies
2
Views
2K
hso
hso
mljdeckard
  • Locked
Pizza Hut coming around, or no?
2
Replies
29
Views
2K
Double Naught Spy
Double Naught Spy
3
  • Locked
Pizza Hut Against Self Defense
2
Replies
28
Views
3K
DCoats
D
W
  • Locked
Pizza Hut fires employee
Replies
15
Views
896
straightShot
S
Back
Top