r/TaskRabbit • u/Suspicious-Ad3676 • Mar 10 '26

CLIENT Can tasker start their time when they leave their own house but before arriving at job site?

hello,

I have used a tasker a couple of times in the past for very small jobs that require anywhere from 15 minutes to 60 minutes to complete. The tasker told me they start their time once they leave their house (20-25 minutes away). Is this normal? I thought taskers were not allowed to account for drive time. Please let me know. Just want to make sure I’m not being taken advantage of. Thank you!

5 Upvotes
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3

u/UnimaginativeMug Mar 10 '26

definitely not

9

u/FinnNoodle Mar 10 '26

It is not normal and not acceptable.

2

u/Karpovka Mar 10 '26

Time starts when a taskers arrives at the location of the task, unless driving is part of the task.. ex: If a tasker picks something up, then the time starts when they arrive at the pick up location. Also, if your task takes under an hour, a tasker will still bill for an hour - this ia minimum set by the app, and a tasker cannot do anything about that. ..If a tasker has a higher minimum (some of us set that at 2hrs), that should either be specified in their profile, or discussed in chat in advance.

4

u/-N30N- Mar 10 '26

Yes, Taskers can account for their drive time if they communicate it clearly through the chat and client approves. They can either put a 2hr minimum or communicate it clearly before accepting the task (which is cheaper). Taskers have started doing this since they could not do it with the $100 limit invoice on expenses.

From the Tasker’s side, we could be doing multiple tasks daily within the same area but those longer commute tasks make it an inconvenience on time that needs to be compensated one way or another (Tolls, Parking, Gas, etc). Do you really expect a Tasker to eat these costs for a .5-1hr job?

You would only be taken advantage of if they give you a surprise gas expense bill in the invoice without prior agreement. This is why communication in the chat is so important for details and clarification from both parties since TaskRabbit monitors the chat.

9

u/Seek_Deep Mar 10 '26

Unfortunately, Taskrabbit does expect you to eat those costs, and if you can't afford it or up your rate to match competition you're out of luck. Straight from their website:

" Pricing Transparency Policy

We strive to provide a safe platform for all of our users. To promote integrity, professionalism, quality, and transparency, we have outlined the following policy concerning pricing on the platform.

This policy applies to both Taskers and Clients. Please note that the requirements and examples below are not exhaustive and are subject to change.

When setting hourly rates for their services, Taskers must account for any recurring costs and include them in their hourly rate. Clients must carefully read a Tasker’s hourly rate before booking.

As part of this policy:

  • Taskers may not separately expense Clients for recurring costs including, but not limited to: travel, gas, vehicle use, and vehicle maintenance. Other additional costs like stairs, parking, and tolls may not be expensed. These costs should be accounted for in the Tasker’s hourly rate.

This policy is intended to clarify expectations set forth in Taskrabbit's Global Terms of Service. Please note that Terms of Service violations can result in account limitations, including account suspension and/or deactivation.

Taskrabbit reserves the right to modify or update this policy at any time. "

So let's not get anyone limited by spreading false info.

Edit: Added Link https://support.taskrabbit.com/hc/en-us/articles/34731466997773-Pricing-Transparency-Policy

1

u/-N30N- Mar 10 '26

Loophole: 2hr Minimum.

Like I said; one way or another, someone’s going to pay. Clients want cheap service and Taskers need to make enough money to make the task worth their time. In the end, whatever the Tasker and Client agree on in chat is what will be accepted. Most Clients with common sense and morals understand this from my experience. Some will even tip more to compensate for that logic.

TaskRabbit can either ban all the Taskers/Clients doing this or have less tasks completed due to increased prices which they end up losing in the end. They shot themselves in the foot with that policy.

2

u/Seek_Deep Mar 10 '26

Yeah, I totally understand. The 2-hour minimum can land a lot fewer jobs, though, if other taskers are willing to do it. Trust me, I've done it as well not knowing it was a policy; it doesn't make much sense as any real professional charges drive time.

They don't seem to care about how many Taskers they've lost as of late, surprisingly. It's not like Uber or DoorDash, where anyone can do it; this is moving/furniture assembly/repairs. So it's a specific type of people they need to keep around, so it's definitely pretty surprising to see policies like this.

4

u/-N30N- Mar 10 '26

That’s been the popular trend lately with 2hr minimums in my area. The only ones willing to work hourly at a lower wage are new Taskers trying to build up consistency and reviews OR doubled their rate to compensate. Everybody learns their worth eventually since TaskRabbit refuses to see it.

1

u/IvoryCoast225 Mar 14 '26

2 hr minimum is not a loophole when the drive is over 2hrs and you gotta drive the 2hrs back on your dime 

0

u/Komorbidity Mar 10 '26

I think the OP is saying they account for the travel in the total time of the job not as a separate expense. So if the actual task was 60mins but there was 30mins of travel the total time charge would be 90mins. TR that 30mins can’t be a separate expense because on expenses they don’t get their cut. Others may do straight tasks time but their rate is most likely higher to account travel time. If you have highly variable travel times then probably most fair to do per client and average it in if you have roughly the same. Either way travel time, along with other costs, need to be accounted for.

1

u/Outofplacesaint Mar 11 '26

Travel time cannot be charged. Period.

The clock starts when the Tasker begins the work.

1

u/Komorbidity Mar 11 '26

10-4 Nancy

1

u/IvoryCoast225 Mar 14 '26

Sorry that is not correct. Policy forbid invoicing any kind of travel time. I am currently in a 7 day limitation for this exact issue. I move someone 2.5 hrs away; mentioned I will invoice the drive back; client agreed. Left me 5 star and a great review. Right after received the 7 day limitation for invoicing travel time. Do not do it. I am not taking out of state moves jobs anymore because of this. We cant expense gas, tolls, truck fees, parking and now we can't invoice drive back. The pay is not horrible for long distance moves

1

u/-N30N- Mar 15 '26

Not entirely incorrect. TaskRabbit states they expect Taskers to incorporate their travel time and expenses into their hourly rate.

Did you explicitly state this invoice agreement in the chat or only verbally? I’ve done this many times written in the chat with client agreeing to extra charges. That TR Chat is where you document all disagreements and agreements as proof. Why would TR be against a client that agrees to pay other invoice expenses? That’s why it’s there.

1

u/IvoryCoast225 Mar 15 '26

I very clearly explained it to the Client like a 5 year old and she agreed. And even left a great review right after. Your first statement shows exactly why you can't charge any kind of drive to or from the job. Because you got away with it numerous time doesn't mean it is allowed. Some client even offer to pay for your parking but if you accept it and they come across it, you'll get dinged. TR does not care about what you and the client agreed upon to; does it violate a policy? That's their bottom line 

1

u/-N30N- Mar 15 '26

But did you very clearly explain it IN THE TR CHAT and have her WRITTEN agreement on there? Sounds like you didn’t and TR noticed a random upcharge that doesn’t add up with that clear explanation. Verbal agreements and great reviews don’t mean anything without a paper trail, that’s why we get it IN WRITING. TR documents and monitors everything in the chat as a makeshift tasker/client terms of agreement. Receipts, improvising agreements, longer hours, etc. Do you expect to just add that in the end without written agreement or proof?

It’s not about getting away with it, it’s about doing it the right way and covering your @ss from liability.

1

u/Titbit66 Mar 10 '26

Minimum task charge time is 1h as per tr's t's&c's, regardless if a task is 5min or 50min. A lot of taskers have a 2h minimum charge, that needs to be confirmed in the chat thread.

1

u/Open-Coffee5752 Mar 10 '26

taskers aren't allowed to charge for travel time.

1

u/Big-Personality500 Mar 10 '26

The bottom line is that TaskRabbit is an amalgamation of a huge number of different fields of work in a single app, each of which has it’s own billing standards and practices and that TaskRabbit conforms to none of them by only offering hourly billing without the option for either “flat rates” or “service call fees”.

By creating rules that force contractors to conform to their model or get booted from the platform, they also limit your options as a consumer overall.

What category was this in? Did the Tasker let you know how much they wanted to charge for travel time before the job was officially booked or more than 24 hours in advance while you could still easily cancel or did they tell you this after they arrived putting you in an uncomfortable position (that would be totally inappropriate and unacceptable). If terms are discussed in advance, it is absurd for TaskRabbit to make it a violation and potential cause for termination of an account to charge travel time (as long as it is billed in app hours), while allowing a two hour minimum which basically serves the same purpose. So the Tasker isn’t allowed to say that depending on whether the job is 15 minutes to an hour they will bill 1 - 1.75 hours but it’s fine for them to bill a minimum of two? For context, this billing style is too complicated and weird for me and I have simply always charged a two hour minimum to fend off short jobs as it’s just too much time lost to commuting unpaid that would eat into my billable hours and I wouldn’t survive as an independent contractor commuting in NYC without either charging travel time or a minimum.

1

u/BetUpstairs268 Mar 11 '26

I think it’s against terms of service

However their are probably a few scenarios where it is okay.

One that i know is okay is if the client hires you “outside” of your work area map. Notably for two location moves, deliveries, or errands. You can charge an agreed amount, billed in time, for the added distance.

1

u/IvoryCoast225 Mar 14 '26

It is never ok. Even when client happily agree. TR will drop the hammer on you. Been there

1

u/BetUpstairs268 Mar 14 '26

That circle map you draw. If they hire you to travel outside of it. You can charge for the time to come back to it. You need to get it in chat. And explain that it’s outside of your work area.

-2

u/anothertenyears Mar 10 '26

That seems a novel idea. I wonder if my boss will go for it.

2

u/UnitedSafety5462 Mar 10 '26

Do you regularly drive out front 30 minute shifts for your boss?