We call on Brighton & Hove City Council to investigate and address growing public safety, safeguarding and compliance concerns linked to takeaway delivery couriers operating across Brighton & Hove, and to press for stronger local and national action where needed.

Across the city, there is increasing concern about dangerous rider behaviour, weak accountability and poor visibility over who is actually carrying out deliveries. Residents, pedestrians, road users and legitimate couriers are all affected when standards are too low and enforcement is too weak.

Concerns include takeaway couriers riding through red lights, using pavements in ways that put pedestrians at risk, travelling at unsafe speeds, and operating electric bikes that appear to fall outside normal pedal-assist limits. There is also concern about bikes that appear to be throttle-controlled, with riders clearly not pedalling while still travelling at speed. These behaviours create risks not only for the riders themselves, but also for children, elderly residents, disabled pedestrians and other road users.

There is also growing concern around accountability and identification. In many cases, riders are difficult to identify because faces are obscured by helmets, hoods or balaclavas, and there are wider concerns about weak identity verification, account sharing, false or borrowed accounts, and poor traceability when incidents occur. This creates a serious public confidence issue and raises safeguarding concerns for residents who are receiving deliveries at their homes.

Customers also need to be protected. Takeaway couriers regularly attend private homes, including addresses where children, elderly residents, or people with vulnerable needs may be present. That creates a clear safeguarding dimension which should not be ignored. When a delivery is carried out by someone using an untrue, borrowed or unverified identity, it creates a serious safeguarding concern for customers, because the person arriving at the door may not be the person the platform or business believes them to be.

Further concern exists around the condition and apparent compliance of some delivery vehicles and battery systems. Some battery packs and conversions appear unsafe or improvised, raising fears about fire risk as well as road safety. Whether these concerns relate to vehicle legality, insurance compliance, battery safety or rider conduct, the current system appears to leave too many gaps.

While major delivery platforms may have systems in place to control who their couriers are, public concern remains that safeguarding risks are not fully eliminated where fake, shared or borrowed accounts are still able to operate. Stronger screening standards are needed. Our proposed approach is to move away from relying purely on online applications and instead require thorough face-to-face interviews, direct identity checks, DBS screening where appropriate, and proper in-person vetting by trained staff before a courier is approved to work.

This petition is not an attack on honest couriers who work lawfully and responsibly. On the contrary, stronger standards would help protect legitimate riders and improve trust in the sector. The current situation risks undermining those who follow the rules while allowing unsafe or non-compliant practices to continue.

We therefore call on Brighton & Hove City Council to:

. Review public safety, safeguarding and compliance concerns linked to takeaway courier activity in Brighton & Hove.

. Work with Sussex Police and relevant agencies to assess the scale of unsafe riding, pavement use, traffic light offences and potential vehicle non-compliance.

. Engage with delivery platforms operating in the city and press for stronger identity checks, account security and rider accountability

. Consider what further local action, scrutiny or recommendations are needed to better protect residents and road users.

. Formally press the Brighton Council for stronger national regulation covering courier identity verification, vehicle legality, insurance compliance, battery safety and platform responsibility.

Brighton & Hove should not wait for a serious incident before treating this issue with the seriousness it deserves. The city needs safer roads, better accountability, stronger safeguards and higher standards across the takeaway delivery sector.