DPD could be facing a £90,000 fine after a Home Office raid in Lincoln resulted in the arrest of two DPD delivery drivers who were found to be asylum seekers with no right to work.
The Home Office raid, conducted alongside Lincolnshire Police, was prompted by intelligence reports claiming some employees at a DPD facility were working illegally, with concerns raised that that they were driving without a UK licence.
The officers stopped more than 30 DPD drivers in their vehicles on Monday morning (9 November) after they had loaded up their vans and were leaving the depot to begin their delivery shifts
Two Indian males in DPD uniforms and in DPD vans were apprehended. Both were asylum seekers who had arrived on student visas. Both men were arrested and bailed pending further investigation. A third Indian national was found to have overstayed their visa.
The raid follows a meeting last month between Home Office officials and delivery companies, which focused on illegal working in the parcel delivery sector.
The Home Office told MT the aim of the meeting was to create closer cooperation with delivery companies to ensure they are doing all they can to prevent illegal working happening under their watch.
According to chief immigration officer Stacey Donnelly who was at the raid at the DPD facility, her team is experiencing a rise in immigration offences being carried out within parcel delivery companies.
She added: “We know the abuse is there. Our work is to tackle that and also then tackle the employers as well.”
The UK has one of the most strictest Right to Work systems in Europe. In most European countries asylum seekers are allowed to work immediately or within six months of making an asylum application.
In the UK, most asylum seekers are not allowed to work while their claim is being decided and companies caught employing an asylum seeker who does not have permission to work face civil penalties of up to £45,000 per worker for a first breach and up to £60,000 per worker for repeat breaches
A Home Office spokesperson told MT: “Illegal working undermines honest employers, undercuts local wages, and fuels organised immigration crime.
“We will not stand for it. In the two years since the general election, we have increased Immigration Enforcement action to the highest level in British history.
“This has delivered a 122% rise in illegal working arrests and a 111% rise in raids.”
Delivery firm are now in danger of being held liable for the employment of illegal workers by driver agencies under recent rule changes.
Since last month the government expanded the Right to Work scheme to cover flexible workers, subcontractors, and delivery drivers, introducing extended civil liability up the contractual chain.
This means a business can be treated as an employer even if they haven’t directly engaged the individual.
If they have contracted out work that eventually reached the individual, they would be required to undertake a right to work check or potentially face a civil penalty.
According to a recent Home Office report, between 1 January and 30 June 2026, 7,270 illegal working visits were carried out resulting in 4,756 arrests, a 31% increase on visits and a 20% increase on arrests compared to the same period in 2025.
The report added: “Over this period, more than 1,200 businesses found to be employing people illegally have been issued with a Civil Penalty, which means they face significant fines of over £74m.”
In a statement, DPD said: “Right to Work checks are in place across DPD for both our colleagues and our delivery partners and we remain fully committed to working with the Home Office to tackle illegal working in our sector.”
