Subcontractor drivers
Subcontractor driver management software for UK courier companies
Subcontractor driver management software is the record for self-employed and limited-company drivers: the documents, the right-to-work evidence, the depot they work, and the self-bill you raise each week. It does not book or route the work. That stays in your dispatch system.
What subcontractor driver management software covers
Subcontractor driver management software keeps one file per driver who is not on your payroll. The file holds identity and right-to-work evidence, the driving licence copy and its expiry, van insurance, the depot and network they work, and the agreement you pay against. Dispatch, routing and proof of delivery stay in the system that books the work.
UK courier companies use this split because the people on the round are often sole traders or limited companies, paid by a weekly self-bill rather than a payslip. Zerity is that file: driver onboarding software, document expiry, and courier self-billing software on the same record.
Self-employed drivers and limited companies
A sole trader and a limited company need different fields on the same screen. Zerity stores the trading details you have collected. It does not give tax advice, and it does not tell you whether someone is employed. Status is a decision for you and your adviser. HMRC publishes the tests in its Check Employment Status for Tax guidance, and the wider note is on self-employed courier employment status.
| Field | Sole trader | Limited company |
|---|---|---|
| Who you contract with | The driver | The company |
| Tax reference you may hold | Unique Taxpayer Reference, if they have given it | Company Unique Taxpayer Reference, if they have given it |
| VAT | VAT number only where you have recorded that they are registered | VAT number only where you have recorded that the company is registered |
| Right to work | The evidence you collected, and the date | The evidence you collected for the person who will drive, and the date |
| Depot and network | Depot, plus Amazon, DPD, Evri, DHL, Royal Mail or Yodel where that is the work | Same depot and network tags |
The Home Office right to work checks: an employer's guide describes the statutory check for employers. Many carrier contracts also ask for evidence when the driver is self-employed. Zerity stores the document and the date. It does not decide whether the statutory check applies to your engagement. A Unique Taxpayer Reference is the number HMRC issues for Self Assessment. How to find one is on GOV.UK. Record it only when the driver has given it to you.
Licence copies and expiry
If someone drives for your operation, your insurer and your carrier contract usually expect a current licence on file. The DVLA explains the check that uses the driver's share code in Check someone's driving licence information. You make that check, or you follow the process your insurer names. Zerity stores the copy, the expiry date and a reminder before it lapses. Zerity does not connect to the DVLA.
The same file can hold van insurance, MOT and tax expiry. How those records sit with a walkaround check is covered on driver compliance software.
The weekly self-bill
HMRC's VAT: self-billing arrangements says both the customer and the supplier must be VAT registered before you issue a VAT invoice in the supplier's name. You need a signed agreement, an expiry date on that agreement, and an undertaking that they will not invoice you for the same work. If the supplier is not VAT registered, you cannot issue them a VAT invoice. The practical guide is HMRC self-billing for couriers.
Example, not a quote and not tax advice. A limited company driver completes five days at an agreed £140 a day. The week's work is £700. If you have recorded that company as VAT registered, and you both are, the self-bill can add VAT at the rate your adviser confirms. Zerity stores the agreement and produces the invoice from the work recorded against that driver. It does not choose the rate or the VAT treatment.
The rate you agree is a commercial figure. The courier rate per drop calculator shows whether a per-drop figure covers miles, insurance and time. It is an estimate from the numbers you type.
Who should use this beside a dispatch system
Qinetic's courier management page states the split plainly: keep the tool that books and dispatches work, and run subcontractor onboarding, documents, vehicles and the self-bill beside it. That framing is right for a UK courier company. Zerity is that layer. The courier driver rota is the people on the week, not a route plan.
Use Zerity if the pain is the driver file and Friday's pay run across depots tagged for Amazon, DPD, Evri, DHL, Royal Mail or Yodel. Keep your dispatch system if it already books the work.
Price
Zerity is £6 per active driver per month for the self-serve platform, with no contract and a 30-day money-back guarantee. Self-serve the same week when you are loading a small fleet and the pay run is not already live. Dated Go-Live for live pay Fridays. A live pay run does not switch over in a day. We do not promise a next-day switch for a live pay run. The figures are on pricing.
Questions
What is subcontractor driver management software?
It is the record for self-employed and limited-company drivers: documents, right to work, the depot they work, and the self-bill you raise each week.
Does this replace our courier dispatch software?
No. Keep the system that books and routes work. Zerity manages the driver, the documents and the pay run.
Can we manage a mix of sole traders and limited companies?
Yes. Each driver record holds the trading details you need for that week's self-bill, including VAT status where you have recorded it.
Does Zerity decide IR35 status?
No. Zerity stores the documents and the agreement. Status is a decision for you and your adviser, using HMRC's guidance.
Does Zerity check driving licences with the DVLA?
No. Zerity stores the licence copy and the expiry date, and reminds you before it lapses. The check itself is the DVLA share-code service, or the process your insurer requires.