Pizza Hut Refuses to deliver to my neighborhood based on race and class! Ripoff Huntsville Texas

Dominos Pizza does the same thing. I live in East Dallas on a street where one end is considered the hood and the other end is considered normal. I live on the normal side. There is litterally a line in the road that splits the two parts, its funny actually. Dominos Pizza will not deliver past dark to our area. However... unlike your story... Pizza Hut WILL deliver to our area after dark.

It's about safety and it is very understandable so don't hold Pizza Hut as to being the bad guy... it is the morons commiting the crimes.

Crime happens everywhere...not just in Black neighborhoods. However, it's mind-boggling that they only consider Black neighborhoods high crime areas. If I do a HPD Crime Doppler request on our police department's website, you'll see that there are crime dots all OVER our fair city of Houston. So that crap about how race isn't a factor is just that...crap. There are $250K up to $450K new condos, townhomes, lofts and homes popping up monthly in the 'hood area I reside in. Right now, the scales teeter to the side of being still more Black populated...but give it a minute. A change is on the horizon...you see the moving vans more and more nowadays.

Thanks to gentrification, the neighborhood is quickly being re-populated with caucasians who are moving back into the city from the suburbs. Gas is too high to drive two hours to and from the "safe areas" (where crime still exists, mind you) so as not to live by a bunch of Black people...so, property costs are skyrocketing over here hoping to flip the population. It should be fun to witness the turning of the tides. I'm Black, by the way...and I can afford to stay without robbing pizza trucks.

I am willing to bet that as the scales teeter towards it being more heavily populated by caucasians, the pizza places, (there's a Papa John's within 3 miles and a Pizza Hut merely one mile down the street that will not deliver over here...not even in the middle of the day when this whole neighborhood of pesky Black criminals are most likely sleep or busy cutting up their crack rocks waiting for sundown to deal drugs and rob all pizza delivery trucks -- at least that's assuredly what they think of all the people over here - LOL), will go back to delivering in this area. And when they do, I promise to come back with pictures as proof that it's now safe to deliver in this "high crime" area.

This phenomena has already happened in what has been re-termed "Midtown" (about a four minute drive from my house) and the "Museum District" (about a two minute drive from my house). Those places used to be called "Fourth Ward," "Second Ward," and "Sixth Ward." Change the predominant color of the residents, snazz up the name from a "ward" and deliveries can and will be reinstated.

The way I fight the obvious discrimination of this area is to not patronize these places. I don't even go pick up their product. If I must leave the house, I'd just as soon go to another place and give them my business. I don't believe in pulling the "Race Card," but the facts of Black life cannot be understood or comprehended by people who are not Black. When Black people state an obvious slight that we actually go through...it's "pulling the race card" because it's something other races just don't have to deal with. (Well, Middle Easterners now probably feel the funk...but it's funny that we don't create terror codes for or profile White folks at Federal buildings and airports even though a White man blew up a building in Oklahoma...Hmmmmm!)

MY HUSBAND IS IN THE MILITARY AND DELIVERS PIZZA AS A PT TO HELP OUT FAMILY . I THINK THAT THE DELIVEY DRIVER SHOULD NOT HAVE TO BRING PIZZA TO ANY PLACE WITH HIGH CRIME OR ANY AREA THAT HAS HAD A PIZZA DELIVER DRIVER WHO HAS BEEN ROBBED . MY HUSBAND COMPANY HAD AN AREA SHUT DOWN AND THEY DECIDED TO REOPEN DUE TO COMPLAINTS LIKE THIS . GUESS WHAT ANOTHER DRIVER ASSULTED OVER $20 .SO YOUR PIZZA OR A PERSON'S SAFTEY . SAFTEY 1ST . ITS NOTHING TO DO WITH SKIN COLOR .

I'm sorry but I just have to respond to this -- probably the most ridiculous thing I've read ALL day. You have absolutely NO vital proof that they will not deliver to you it's simply paranoia.

People pull the race / discrimination card far to often and it becomes sickening ripoffreport.com should not be abused like this - people come here seeking help with legit problems with companies.

People of your kind disgust me.

Huntsville is a very small town. You could be out in your pj's picking up the pizza and it would not matter. Despite this being a college town, it rolls up the sidewalks at night and on Sunday's. Or you can call the other 2 pizza establishments. And to be honest with you I lived in Huntsville a few yers back and I really don't remember any bad neighborhoods!!

Your report states that you truly believe that Pizza Hut Inc. uses race and class for determination of deliveries.

Now I want you to read that first line again just to make sure you know why you are complaining. Ok, now I am an employee for Pizza Hut, and I am one of their drivers, I also take phone calls. To my understanding, the person you were talking with on the phone said that they cannot deliver to your area because they say it is outside of their delivery area.
As I have taken many phone calls, I have came across this same problem. You are asked if this order is going to be delivery or carry-out, your phone number, and then your name and address. If I happen to come across an address that the computer says is out of range I simply type in a default address that Will be in range, which in my area is '1 S Main St" and in the address line two I type in their actual address. All of our drivers know that if it says '1 S Main St', then look at the below line and use that address instead.

So, in my conclusion it is not the employees fault for your accused descrimination, it's just simply a computer error that can be gone around. Most of the time this happens because it's a new house and a computer that hasn't been updated. I hope you will understand this and take it into consideration the next time you order a pizza.
Thanks,

At the end of the day safety is always an issue and I am pretty sure if you were talk to the establishment in a professional manner they wold tell you why they don't deliver there.

FORGET ABOUT RACE FOR A MINUTE, in poor areas there is more crime. That is Basic Commen Sense which can be taken from any census report across the nation. There is a much smaller chance the delivery driver will get robbed from a higher or middle class neighborhood. Of course there are always exceptions to the rule, but at the end of the day it is life.

At the end of the day safety is always an issue and I am pretty sure if you were talk to the establishment in a professional manner they wold tell you why they don't deliver there.

FORGET ABOUT RACE FOR A MINUTE, in poor areas there is more crime. That is Basic Commen Sense which can be taken from any census report across the nation. There is a much smaller chance the delivery driver will get robbed from a higher or middle class neighborhood. Of course there are always exceptions to the rule, but at the end of the day it is life.

I delivered pizza for 6 years off and on, and delivering pizza for the most part is safe, but ya gotta always be prepared to for crazy crap to go on. Sometimes, a store manager, or driver can refuse delivery to a certain neighbourhood, or house because of safety, and harassment concerns.

Not worth 20 dollars to be put in harms way, and delviering in unsafe areas, or delivering to houses where people dont upkeep there sidewalks, decks, and deal with violent dogs, or having to make deliveries to the back of houses or unlit areas at night.

Only .5% delivering can be dangerous at times, and sometimes youll take the hit on money and hit on tips from a irate customer because its not worth your safety to collect money from a thug customer. Drivers should be allowed to be armed in higher crime areas, Car topper act as managets for criminal lookin for easy money, but luckily i worked in low crime area.

In Trailer courts, usually walking on the patio and decks in the winter is the most dangerous part of the job because people in trailer parks tend to not upkeep there homes, but I found the most dangerous situations delivering occur at night when a drunk, or high crazed customer orders pizza, and doesnt come up with the money for the order. That occur in neighbourhoods of the wealthy, and the poor.

John in Pensacola-you are not the only manager who cares for his employees. I'm a driver in Jackson, MS, and we are lucky to have a good management team. They are probably underpaid and overworked, yet always give the drivers a fair shake. If there are three tickets going to the same street, or hotel, or neighborhood, they will dispatch 3 tickets to save the driver money and time.

We haven't had any problems at my store, thank God, but I have heard of drivers being robbed and Pizza Hut simply refusing to deliver to those high crime neighborhoods. Racist? Fascist? Whatever. Human lives are not worth the cost of a pizza, and our management team here understands it.

So to all you people who are having problems with PH, or Dominos, or PJ-get over it! Either move to a better neighborhood or pick up the pizza because let's face it, a human life is worth more than your business.

I can tell you that driver safety IS a concern. Employee safety and comfort is the number one priorty over all else including customer satisfaction. If I recieve enough complaints from drivers I will by all means cut off an area of town believed to be unsafe. This typically includes "the ghetto" "the projects" and even some low class trailer parks.

These low income areas are also typically low dollar orders and non-tipping customers. No offense to the original poster, he/she may be the exception to the rule, but its a reality that anyone working for a delco is aware of.

As a manager I will not subject my employess to unsafe delivery conditions, any more than I would allow inside employees to run across wet floors with sharp knives. Its the same difference.

And as a driver I d**n sure dont like pulling into crackville, being blockaded by 20 black guys/white trash while looking for an apartment, glared at, asked if im a cop or have hands thrust into my windows offering me crack.

Get over it.

Sorry to burst any bubbles out there, but "store management" doesn't seem to care whether
a driver is safe or not. Each driver has to know
the area(s). Corporate DOESN'T! They do, however, try to section out our maps to let the newbies know where NOT to go,(or to refuse to go)by color coding areas...Though I have heard drivers argue with managers concerning their safety when delivering to certain areas. FACE IT.
ARE YOU IN A HIGH CRIME AREA? Then call, and PICK UP YOUR PIZZA! And yes, I, as a Pizza Hut driver, am aware that some areas are more threatening than others, to be robbed, or killed, for a lousy $18.00 that I might have on me at the time!

It is totally a safety issue. While racial fanatics like to cry the race card at every opportunity including this one, ask yourself if it is simply a coincidence that "racial neighborhoods" happen to be the most dangerous in general? Safety all the way!

I'm white and live in a racially mixed area. We have blacks, hispanics, japanese, chinese, koreans, vietnamese and just about every other race there is.

We commonly laugh at how we're the united nations of Ohio.

Well, a bunch of us, while having a small party in my neighbors back yard wanted to order pizza, so we called P-Hut.

We were told they couldn't deliver in our area. When we asked why, they said out of their region.

No biggie, my neighbor called his kids cell phone and asked him, (he's a driver).
His answer was laughable, but true.

He said: Dad, you can't anyone to deliver there since the last shooting. (The a drug dealer, disguised as a pizza delivery guy got gunned down a while back.)

Even I won't wear my uniform to or from work for that reason.

We sent somebody to pick the pizza up.
Race issue? Not at all.
Safety issue? I'd say it is.

Where do you get off saying that Pizza Hut targets rich white class people. Hell Pizza Hut targets anyone who is willing to give them 20 dollars for a Pizza. That's capitalism folks, not racialism! Maybe you can work with Pizza Hut to accomodate your address. If you are understanding and able to work with Pizza Hut, they will work with you....DUMBASS!!! Most of you people on here really have no sense of the work most business do to bring you the products that you use. Granted of course there are problems! AND a company would want nothing more than to correct those problems! So no one can tell me that Pizza Hut does not care! THAT IS JUST STUPID!!

Hello Steven,

I too have a similar story or should I say 2 stories about the Pizza Hut in Huntsville, Texas. Lets start way back in 1991. I know this is way back but, some things never change. In 1991 I went to the old Pizza Hut located at the intersection of Hwy 75 North and 11th street in Huntsville. Keep in mind that I dined here quite regularly up until this time and knew most of the waitstaff by name and they knew me. That building has since closed and is now a Mexican restaurant which is very good by the way. You can tell it was a Pizza Hut by the architectural style of the building. Anyway, back to my story. We met a young couple for dinner there that had a very young child. During the course of our meal the child's mother found a very long hair on her sons slice of pizza. It was the wrong color and the wrong length to have come from anyone siting at our table. We complained to a manager by the name of Mike. Mike was very unsympathetic and eventually offered to subtract the cost of that one slice of pizza from the cost of our meal. I could not believe what I was hearing. This guy actually expected us to finish eating that pizza and pay for the slices that did not have a hair on them. Needless to say I never once patronized that establishment ever again. Well time went by and they relocated out off HWY 30 west by Westhills Mall. Like they say time heals all wounds and forgive and forget. In October of 2002 I was living off of Fish Hatchery Road. My fiance wanted a pizza and I thought what the heck, I will put all this behind me and call Pizza Hut and have one delivered. Its been long enough since my bad experience. I called Pizza Hut located on Hwy 30 west and ordered a couple of Pizzas. I gave them my address and asked how long I should expect to wait for them to be delivered. The gentleman on the phone said 35 Min's or less. Well an hour and a half went by and no pizza. I called back and was told we canceled your order. We don't deliver to Fish Hatchery Road. These people never bothered to tell me that when they took my order and didn't have the common courtesy to call me as I was waiting for my dinner. I wrote a letter to the manager of the Pizza Hut on Hwy 30 W and never received a reply. I wrote the corporate office which is located in Addison, Texas if my memory serves me correctly and never received a reply from them either. The bottom line is this. The Pizza Hut on Lake Road closed down for the same reason the Pizza Hut at 75 and 11th shut down that is they could not operate at a profit. This is a very small town and word spreads around here like wildfire. I would encourage you to share your story with your co-workers, church members, friends, neighbors and anyone else you encounter. Oh and by the way Poppa Johns on Sam Houston Avenue delivers to Fish Hatchery and their pizza will blow Pizza Hut out of the water in this backwoods,one horse, hick town. Several years ago Sam Houston graduate and CBS reporter Dan Rather said"There is not a single intellectual in Huntsville, Texas and that includes the faculty, staff and students of Sam Houston State University". I don't agree with that statement 100% but, I do have to say Dan was on to something when he said it.Many business owners in this town are just plain rude. They just can not seem to figure out why we go to The Woodlands to shop. You might also want to check with Mr. Gattis on Normal Park. I don't know about their delivery area but, they have a really tasty buffet, the price is right and the employees are very nice. As for your allegations of racism I can not respond to that because I am not what would be called a minority. I'm just a middle class white guy that works for a living and I try my best to treat others with decency and respect until they give me a reason not to. unfortunately I'm left with the impression that the management and the employees of the Pizza Hut in Huntsville, Texas don't share my philosophy. Steven, spend your hard earned money at establishments that treat you the way you deserve to be treated. Best of luck to you my friend.

I work for Big D. I will give in my input. I've been delivering for 3 yrs. About the Pizza hut your talking about in your area go over to the store and ask them where they exactly deliver to. Thats the first thing. The franchise store if it is that has the right of boundary in certain spots. It could mean a high crime area, it doesn't factor race, insurance regulations are correct b/c if a driver goes out of "bounds" and something happens then the franchise could be fined $5000. Thats what Dominos has. I don't know what PH has. I also know for a fact when customers call my store up and believe me we get calls all over the place I ask the customer where they're at. I don't argue b/c that could be a loss.

One other thing you all can do is go to another website. I don't know if I can put it on here but you get the point.

I am sure it is a sobering thought to realize the place where you work as a delivery driver will not deliver food to the area where you live. However, I'm sure those same drivers are not clamouring to make deliveries to those same high crime areas. I worked at a couple pizza delivery places years (not the same co. in question) ago while in college and as the drivers use to tell the owner and bosses, "its one thing to live in a high crime area and drive around there as a resident. Its another thing completely to go there with a big "topper" on my car announcing I'm a delivery driver carrying cash and food". These drivers, from high crime areas, were familar enough with the crime and going ons in their neighborhoods to know they didn't want to deliver there. They refused outright when a manager or owner tried to convince them otherwise.

It must feel highly insulting to a delivery driver to be told he can't deliver to certain "high crime" areas, when given his obviously low rate of pay, he probably LIVES in one of those "high crime" areas! Imagine someone having to turn down "x" number of deliveries to places because they're in a "high crime" area, then coming home to that exact same neighborhood at night. Gosh. Like Yakov Smirnov says, "What a country!"

My nephew drives for Pizza Hut, and can't even deliver to the neighborhood he lives in due to the area being "black-listed" because of drivers being robbed. Drivers are not required to risk their lives for a pizza delivery. My nephew even volunteered to deliver in the area but Pizza Hut management says not until they are sure the area is safe for all drivers. It sucks, but until the drivers are allowed to carry guns, the people that live in the area will simply have to pick up their own pizza. As Denny of Honolulu would know, this is an area populated almost entirely by Hawaiians. Is the policy racist? I say no, it's common sense. These same Hawaiians need to clean up their act, or be forever "pizza-challenged." I view it as just one more "freedom" being denied the majority because of a violent minority.

I see that you can actually see the light at the end of the tunnel. I was happy to see that you can actually think logicallly.

Amen! I agree! Drivers shouldn't have to deliver to high crime areas of any town. Our area ram-rod, Preston Arnswine, doesn't think so. Everybody should give him a call [(865) 984-4340] and question his corporate logic.

I'm wondering at this point if ADF Pizza Huts even have a safety policy concerning their delivery drivers.

There are many places I wouldn't go in Huntsville after dark. None of them would include the "rich white neighborhoods". I know the manager of the Pizza Hut here in Huntsville and she's not an idiot either.

Race is incidental to the problem. It's dangerous to go into the MLK region of town after dark if you don't belong.

#############################

While your comments seem to make sense. They don't.

#############################

Steven, you can't have it both ways. They do make sense, to sensible people. You have shown that you are not sensible.

#############################

First of all, you live in Hawaii, not Huntsville, Texas where I am located.

#############################

So what? The same corporate policies cover all Pizza Hut restaurants in the nation. Just because you live in Texas, doesn't mean that OUR pizza huts do not operate under the same policies.

#############################

Second, there is only one Pizza Hut store serving the entire city of Huntsville. The next closest store is OVER 30 MILES AWAY!

#############################

And your point? So what if hte next one is 30 miles away? Does it change that fact that your AREA may not BE IN THEIR DELIVERY AREA? They determine delivery areas by how "fast" they can get to a location. If you're out of their 50 minute time zone ( that is including the time to cook the pizzas / this figure is dependent on your area and the amount of business it could/does receive) then your Neighborhood is out of hte delivery area.

You've yet to prove that that particular pizza hut delivers to your AREA. Did you consult with your neighbors to see which Pizza hut location delivers to your area? Which one they order from?

#############################

Third, I know for a fact that this store delivers to
another neighborhood in the area that is further away from the store than my house. This neighborhood is upper class big exspensive homes, mainly white.

#############################

Still doens't prove the "Racial" bullshit you're spouting.

#############################


So, it's not just a racial issue, it's about race, and economic class.

#############################

aGAIN YOU'VE proven nothing on this. Just that the only LOGICAL reasonS and most practical reasonS are that YOU ARE NOT IN THAT STORES DELIVERY AREA! Or that your AREA is a high crime area, and by POLICY, they do NOT deliver to your neighborhood. THIS IS A BUSINESS DECISION AND THEY HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO NOT DELIVER TO AREAS THAT WOULD PUT THEIR DRIVERS INTO DANGER!

In the Pizza Hut I worked at, our area covered three governmental housing areas, all of which WE WERE NOT allowed to deliver to (because of past incidneces and the crime rate in these areas, the company decided that it would be better for them, and LIABILITY reasons, to not have drivers, who carry cash on hand to make change, to be put into a situation that would put their lives in danger... NOT OVER a $20 pizza ).

So, you'd rather have a pizza delivery driver RISK THEIR LIFE so that you can have your pizza?



#############################


Finally, you are either lying or you have some dumb people living in Hawaii if the store closest to you won't deliver to you.


#############################

Not lying or dumb. In fact in one area, the Pizza Hut delivery store is right across a big freeway for my friend's apartment. Literally, its less than a mile away, but because of this "freeway" that Pizza Hut doesn't deliver to her home. She has to call one that is 3 miles away.

Geographical nuances also determine delivery area and size.

Then again, it boils down that as a business they can REFUSE to deliver to any area they dont want to THEY DO NOT HAVE to.

Steven, we know where you're priorities lie. You rather have a pizza delivery driver get jacked, beaten, robbed, hurt, and maybe even killed jus so you can have them deliver your pizza.

To the angry white person in the predominantly black neighborhood, open your eyes.....Did you see any of the live coverage of the looting,etc?Pulling the "race Card" is B.S.Quit making excuses and face the facts! As an ex-manager of Pizza Hut for 8+years, I know for a fact that the stores do not pick and choose where their delivery areas are. However, if an area if a high crime area determined by the local police dept., Pizza Hut wil not risk the safety of its employee's lifes to make a few bucks! This is one of the many reasons this is a great company to work for! If you must have their food so much,
just accept this fact and drive(unless you don't have a car either) & pick it up for God's sake!
Racism=nothing but an excuse most of the time anyhow!By the way, on the "live" coverage that I saw for a couple of weeks I didn't catch any white faces running out of stores with T.V.'s, DVD players, clothes etc.....did you?

Well, Well Robert, It looks like we do agree on something...

You people really need to stop the racial excuse bullshit. Seems like every time things don't go your way, you cry racism. I mean can you really blame some 17 yr old "white" kid working for minimum wage for not wanting to go into a ghetto and take the chance of getting mugged or even shot at for a measly $20 bucks? No, working at pizza hut isn't worth his life.

If I worked there I wouldn't deliver to you either and I would tell you that the reason is cause I don't want to go into your crack-house infested, high crime neighborhood.

I just so happen to be a WHITE person living in a largely BLACK neighborhood!!!

No, this is not a high crime neighborhood.
And to the dumbass that watches the news and believes everything he sees...wise up, there's more going on in the world than what you see on the 6 o'clock news!

When I lived in TX. For some reason the Pizza Hut and Papa John's located in my town did not deliver to the apartment complex that I lived in. I had to order from the neighboring town. Yet pretty much everywhere around the complex were in the delivery zones. I even had a manager who was getting off duty (from the Pizza Hut in my town) bring the pizzas to us because she lived across the street from the complex and couldn't understand why they could deliver to her house and not to ours. And there were a lot of places farther off that were delivered to, but for some reason we had to order from another town.

When corporate comes up with something, the store has no choice but to follow it. (No matter how stupid.)

Here's the deal Steven. Do you watch the news? I'll use recent news events for this little story. The people in the RICH WHITE neighborhhods weren't the people shooting at everyone trying to help. It wasn't the RICH WHITE people who were stealing televisions and Nike shoes, and shooting at cops trying to regain order. It isn't the RICH WHITE people who kill pizza delivery guys to steal a $20 order. When you get off your race-based high horse, you will know who the problem is, and why nobody wants to go into your neighborhood, no matter what city it is.

If so, that may be REAL reason Pizza Hut won't deliver there. They are responsible for their delivery drivers safety, so their Workers Comp and other insurance carriers may have had a say in the matter by either refusing to cover them or much higher premiums due to higher risk to employees. Unfortunately, you read about delivery drivers being robbed and/or killed all of the time over a small amount of money or a few pizzas.

Pizza Hut is yucky anyway..they may be doing you a favor. But I seriously doubt that it is a racial thing..more like a business decision.

While your comments seem to make sense. They don't.
First of all, you live in Hawaii, not Huntsville, Texas where I am located.

Second, there is only one Pizza Hut store serving the entire city of Huntsville. The next closest store is OVER 30 MILES AWAY!

Third, I know for a fact that this store delivers to
another neighborhood in the area that is further away from the store than my house. This neighborhood is upper class big exspensive homes, mainly white.

So, it's not just a racial issue, it's about race, and economic class.

Finally, you are either lying or you have some dumb people living in Hawaii if the store closest to you won't deliver to you.

Have a nice Day :)

Always race based? Please.....
Ever consider that its based on how delivery areas are asigned to each store?

No, it has nothing to do with RACE, neighborhood, ethinicity, or earning income. IT HAS everything to do with where you are located in relation to the Pizza Hut store that is able to deliver to you.

In my case, there are two Pizza Huts within a 3 miles radius of where I live. One is only 1/2 a mile a way, the other 3 miles away. The "delivery" area for the 1/2 mile one, does not cover my house, the one that is 3 miles away does.

The only "race" based issue is the one you think exist (it doesn't) You just happen to live in an AREa where the closes Pizza Hut doesn't deliver to you. The furthest AWAY from you does.

Too bad. If you're so adamant about getting pizza early, DRIVE YOURSELF to the closest one and do a carry out.