Shopping for Instacart is a terrific opportunity to earn money while working on a flexible schedule, but full-service shoppers need a car and valid driver’s license.
Instacart has hundreds of thousands of shoppers all across North America, but you might be wondering if your DUI could stop you from joining their ranks.
What is the Instacart DUI policy and can you get hired on with one? The answer isn’t as simple as you might hope, but see below for the details.
What Is The Instacart DUI Policy In [currentyear]?
Instacart does not necessarily reject an applicant for a DUI, but there is a better chance of being accepted if the infraction occurred more than five years ago and the driver has maintained a clean record since. Full-service shoppers must have a valid driver’s license and rideshare coverage with their car insurance.
To learn more about how Instacart handles applicants with DUIs, other factors that may disqualify you from shopping for the company and what else Instacart looks into during background checks, keep reading!
Will Instacart Hire You With A DUI?
Instacart does not necessarily disqualify anyone immediately from joining their shopper team with a DUI on their record.
The company recognizes that people make mistakes, learn from them and become better.
That said, the nature of a full-service shopper position is such that you must be able to legally operate a vehicle.
You must also show the company that you are a reliable, trustworthy and safe driver.
Unfortunately, more recent DUIs would indicate the opposite.
However, if your DUI is a thing of the past – some five to 10 years ago – you should not consider it a black stain on your record, especially if you have maintained a clean record since.
Even if your DUI was just a few years ago, you might not necessarily be disqualified.
The fact of the matter is, I can’t find any indication that a DUI causes an immediate toss-out of your application.
Look at some of the responses on this Indeed.com thread – a few commenters at least have been brought onto the shopping team with DUIs in their past.
If you really want to shop for Instacart, despite your driving record, apply! And if need be, advocate for yourself with Instacart shopper support.
What Disqualifies You From Working For Instacart?
A DUI might not be an automatic disqualifier if it happened years ago, but you shouldn’t expect an acceptance if it was just a year ago, or less than a year ago.
That looks like you are not a steady, sound-of-mind operator of motor vehicles, unfortunately.
In fact, most any crime conviction in recent history probably won’t look great to Instacart, who outsources their background checks to third party companies Checkr and Sterling.
Further, if you do not have a valid license – for example, if it has expired and you haven’t renewed it – you cannot be a full-service shopper for Instacart.
You cannot drive for this company if you don’t have car insurance, either (in fact, it’s just illegal in general), and it is strongly recommended you get a rideshare policy.
If you have an accident while working and you didn’t get the proper coverage, you will either get in trouble for not doing so, or, if you lie, you will be committing insurance fraud.
Obviously your insurance worries are not Instacart’s problem, so consider lack of insurance something you should self-disqualify for.
Does Instacart Check Criminal Record?
If you have a DUI it will likely show up when Instacart checks your criminal record during the background check.
Bear in mind, you must consent to Instacart performing a background check; you do this by willingly giving them your social security number.
Instacart sources their background checks to two different companies; the first, Checkr, is another San Francisco start-up.
The other, Sterling, actually offers an Instacart shopper FAQ page on their website, which has a lot of helpful information.
According to their FAQ, each organization looks for different things during the background progress, but the main commonalities are criminal records and driving records.
So for sure, if you have something on your record, it’s best to be transparent.
You are not automatically disqualified, especially if it occurred years ago and you have paid the price for it since.
Does Instacart Hire Felons?
Instacart is open to hiring felons and does not consider a past felony offense an automatic “no.”
But it is very much a case-by-case basis.
A lot depends on how long ago the felony was committed and whether the convicted has shown positive signs of rehabilitation since then.
JobsHiringFelons.com advises that felony convictions more than seven years ago stand a good chance of being overlooked.
But violent crimes or crimes of a sexual nature are going to be difficult to overcome, no matter how long ago.
To find out more, you can also read our posts on Instacart privacy policy, Instacart break policy, and Instacart rehire policy.
Conclusion
Instacart does not automatically disqualify applicants caught driving under the influence as part of their DUI policy during hiring.
However, more recent citations and repeat citations may be hard for the company to overlook, as the nature of the full-service shopper position requires steady, reliable drivers.
