Having said all the positives, it must be said that there is no way in the world you can take the vidoes and information on the site about what you'll be doing seriously. It paints the work with rose coloured glasses. In reality there are little details to some of the jobs that make them far less desireable.
For example, many jobs will pay around £5, which on the surface, when you consider the time they take, sounds decent. But what you aren't told until youre assigned the job is that you're REQUIRED to purchase a small item to get a reciept (which comes out of your pay), and often, the pay for the job includes the cost of the age restricted item. This means often you'll actually end up being paid around £2-3 for the job, and just get to keep the items which you may or may not want. Some jobs pay higher, and some lower. Overall its okay, but I have had jobs where I have read the briefing to find I actually won't be earning huge amounts. I have had jobs where my manager has upped the pay considerably, so clearly there is room for ServeLegal to pay their auditors more, but they seem to pocket as much from the stores as possible.
Along the same lines, I have noticed pay for some jobs has even DECREASED, and the amount I am reuimbersed for milage remains at 24 pence per mile, and this did not change even when fuel was reaching £2 per litre. If you assume most cars owned by 18/19 year olds are small, older hatchbacks getting around 35-40 mpg, 24 pence will not cover the petrol in some cases, and doesn't cover any of the other running costs (maintenence, insurance tax etc). Also on the note of cars, at no point have I been asked if I have business insurance on my car. Business insurance is required for trips to various places of work, whereas commuting cover allows you to drive from home to one set place of work on a regular basis. They may have some cover of their own, but this is never mentioned when you apply and sign up, and this may mean their auditors are technically commiting insurance fraud by using their cars for auditing, even though they may be unaware of what business insurance is, or why its needed. ServeLegal should be taking responsibility for this, and making their employees aware of it being a requirement. My vehicle has business insurance so this is not a concern for me, but I could see there being cases where people can't make a claim if involved in an accident while using their vehicle for business use at ServeLegal.
Carrying on about briefings, they may have extra steps, or details that you may not expect. For example, some items REQUIRE you to return the item to the store, or by post, which adds hassle. Or you may need to speak to managers / hand in results letters which takes time, or even just being told you must refuse to give ID, which is very awkward, and some even have specific times when you must visit (which I have never been warned about when my manager assigns jobs). Some stores even have specific processes, all outlined in a lengthy PDF document, where timings must be accurate to the minute, and if you make a small mistake you will not be paid. These require you to carry out specific actions, while remembering everything you need to do and make note of. Obviously you can't read the brief during the Audit, and before hand it may be hard to grasp, because some of them are so poorly worded. There are some videos to help with this, however they are all over 5 years old, in poor definition, and don't actually cover the details you may need (eg operating machines - one video shows you what the machine looks like, and then says to just read the game instructions on the machine, which is absolutely no help).
Another point to consider is that when you apply, it appears that you simply ask your area manager for work when YOU want it. The reality is you are often asked to complete work, and in many cases your Area Manager has pressure on them to get the audit done. This means you often feel pressured to do the jobs, when you were told during application that you'd only be working when you wanted to. This isn't a major issue provided you are willing to stick to your guns and say 'NO' to jobs you do not want. Often these pay bonuses which is nice, but still, it should be represented by saying 'You can ask for work from your manager, or they may message you when there are jobs to be done'.
The same goes for declining work you can't do. Several times I have been assigned more jobs than I asked for, because they're nearby, but in many cases, because your manager is not local, they don't realise how far things actually are away from eachother. Don't be afraid to call them out on this, and say you're not willing to do them. The same goes for some home delviery jobs, I have often been assigned these before I reply to their messages, and have had to say I can't do them. I've never had an issue with asking for jobs to be removed, just make sure you don't feel pressured into doing work you didn't want.
And finally if you live in a rural area, be aware there aren't that many jobs available. For this reason I have not refered anyone despite the refferal bonus, because this would leave no work for me. Similarly, in rural areas everything is spread out, meaning you end up spending hours in the car driving around. If you're not willing to do a job for the base pay, make sure you say this.
The payroll is also bizzare. It happens every 2 weeks, and the cut off for jobs that will be on that payroll is strange too. This isn't an issue for me, but if you're relying on your income from ServeLegal, be aware you may not be paid as soon as you expect.
This is very much a remote job. Don't expect to feel part of the company, if anything you are just a third party contractor, which in some cases is actually a good thing!
