"Up to £20 an hour": how to read the pay in a driving or warehouse advert
4 minute read · 2026-11-02
"Up to £20 an hour" is not a pay rate. It is the top of one. In driving, warehouse and logistics adverts the highest figure is very often the rate for bank holidays, nights, Sundays or overtime, and the hourly rate you would actually be paid for an ordinary shift is noticeably lower. Nothing about that is unlawful. It is just not what most people read when they see the advert, and it is the most common reason a new starter leaves in the first month.
Read the first number, not the last
When an advert gives a range, the first figure is the one to plan around. If it says "£13 to £19 an hour", assume £13 until somebody tells you in writing what earns the rest. If it only gives a top figure, "up to £19", you do not yet know the basic rate at all.
Five questions to ask before you apply
- What is the basic hourly rate for a normal weekday shift?
- What earns anything above it: nights, weekends, overtime after how many hours, bank holidays? How many of those shifts are there really in a month?
- How many hours are guaranteed each week, and what happens to your pay if the work is cancelled on the day?
- Are breaks and waiting time paid? For a driver, how is time at a delivery point or a port queue paid?
- When is pay day, weekly or monthly, and which day?
A good employer answers all five in one call without a fuss. If the answer to the first question changes the second time you ask, you have learned what you needed to know.
Work out the week, not the hour
Multiply the basic rate by the guaranteed hours. That is the pay you can count on. Anything from nights, weekends or bank holidays is extra, and worth having, but it is not a promise unless it is written down. Our take home pay calculator turns that figure into what lands in your bank after tax and National Insurance.
What a fair advert looks like
"£14.50 an hour basic, nights £16.50, overtime after 45 hours at £18, bank holidays double time, 45 hours guaranteed, paid weekly on Friday." Every figure has a reason next to it. On this board every advert has to show the pay as a figure, and when an advert leads with a ceiling we ask the employer to put the basic rate first and to say what earns the rest. On the advert itself we also remind you to ask which figure is the basic rate.
If the pay turns out lower than you were told
Keep the advert (a screenshot is enough), your payslips and any messages about the rate. Ask the employer in writing to explain the difference. If you are paid below the National Minimum Wage, or not paid for hours you worked, free help is available, and you can report it to HMRC without your employer being told it was you.
Found it useful? Press the button, or send it to somebody it would help.
