Pizza Hut Launches Contactless Curbside Pickup Nationwide, Unveils New Safety Seals And Plans To Provide Over 10 Million Masks For Team Members At All Restaurants

- Expanded safety measures also include pre-shift temperature checks and front counter shields -

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Apr 16, 2020, 09:00 ET

PLANO, Texas, April 16, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Pizza Hut is doubling down on its efforts to keep team members and customers safe, today announcing the availability of contactless curbside pickup at participating restaurants nationwide. Pizza Hut is the only national pizza brand to make it easy to select contactless curbside for online orders—all you have to do is check a box during checkout. The brand will also be introducing new health and safety measures aimed at protecting team members, customers and the communities it serves, with a focus on helping to ensure that team members and guests feel safe, valued, and cared for during this critical time.

Pizza Hut today launched contactless curbside pickup nationwide and unveiled new pizza box safety seals. The brand will also be implementing pre-shift temperature checks, installing counter shields and distributing nearly 13 million non-surgical grade masks to employees at all restaurants across the country.

Nationwide Contactless Options
With an increase in customer demand for contactless options—over 60% of online delivery orders are now via contactless delivery— Pizza Hut is introducing curbside pickup for customers that want their pizza right out of the oven, but don't want to leave the safety and comfort of their car. The service is now available at most Pizza Hut restaurants nationwide. Pizza Hut remains committed to providing customers a safe experience to get their pizza via three contactless offerings: curbside pickup, delivery, or carryout.

Requesting curbside pickup is simple. Customers simply check the contactless curbside box at checkout on the website and app, or ask a team member over the phone. While placing an order, customers can provide details on the vehicle they're driving, and then pre-pay using a credit or debit card. Once you've arrived, call the store or look for the curbside attendant. A gloved team member will bring out your pizza and place it in your car. As with all orders, Pizza Hut's process requires that once your pizza leaves Pizza Hut's 400+ degree oven, it slides hands-free into the box without anyone touching the pizza until you open the box at home.

Putting Customers at Ease
Starting next week, new tamper proof safety seals will be applied to all Medium and Large pizza boxes, as well as all Dinner Box, Big Dinner Box, and Big Dipper orders. The new safety seal must be broken by the customer in order to access the food inside. Pizza Hut's hands-free oven-to-box process and new safety seals will help give customers confidence that their food was not touched after leaving the oven.

Pizza Hut is also deferring expiring Hut Rewards Points for members during this time. All points set to expire between April 13 and June 30 are being extended until mid-October. For those members who had points expire between March 15 and April 12, those points have been returned to member accounts and are available to redeem for free pizza, wings and more.

Protective Equipment for Team Members
Pizza Hut is also adding to its commitment to the health and safety of team members by introducing new recommended safety procedures and by planning to make certain personal protective equipment available to franchisees, team members, and its franchisees' team members, including:

Masks – Over 10 million non-surgical grade masks will be available for in-restaurant team members at restaurants across the country over the coming weeks. Masks have already been deployed to Pizza Hut restaurants located in hot zones around the country, and additional supply will start arriving for use by Pizza Hut team members at other restaurants beginning next week.
Team Member Temperature Checks – Temperature check procedures will be communicated as thermometers become available in the coming weeks.
Counter Shields – Clear protective shields will be available for restaurants to install at the front counter to add a barrier between team members and customers, providing an extra layer of protection for contactless carryout orders.
Single-Use Disposable Gloves – All guest-facing restaurant team members are advised to wear single-use, disposable gloves during their shifts, in addition to team members who wear gloves when handling and preparing food after they've thoroughly washed and sanitized their hands.
Social Distancing Reminders – Signage is available to be placed in the restaurant and back of house to remind and encourage social distancing procedures for both customers and team members.

"The health and safety of our team members, customers and the communities we serve remains our top priority," said Nicolas Burquier, Chief Customer and Operations Officer, Pizza Hut. "We understand people trust us to provide safe, fast and reliable food to feed them and their families. We take that responsibility very seriously and these new measures are reaffirmation of that mentality."

Serving the Community
Pizza Hut remains committed to giving back to the communities it serves. On Monday, the Hut launched Read & Feed, an initiative aimed at making a difference for kids out of school during this time, paying tribute to Pizza Hut's longtime commitment to literacy with programs like BOOK IT! Through Read & Feed, Pizza Hut is donating 250,000 Personal Pan Pizzas and will provide $500,000 in grants to educators through its nonprofit partner, First Book. The initiative provides meals to students that typically rely on reduced price lunch and puts books in the hands of kids currently out of school in need of educational resources.

Additionally, Pizza Hut and its franchisees recently announced that they're hiring for over 30,000 open positions at restaurants across the country. Available jobs include cooks, shift leaders, restaurant managers, and virtual call center agents.

Stay up to date on all things Pizza Hut by following along on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. To order now, visit www.pizzahut.com.

About Pizza Hut^®
Pizza Hut, a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE: YUM), has more restaurant locations in the world than any other pizza company. Founded in 1958 in Wichita, Kan., Pizza Hut operates over 18,000 restaurants in more than 100 countries. With easy order options including the Pizza Hut app, mobile site, and Amazon and Google devices, Pizza Hut is committed to providing an easy pizza experience – from order to delivery – and has Hut Rewards, the Pizza Hut loyalty program that offers points for every dollar spent on food any way you order. Pizza Hut is also the proprietor of The Literacy Project, an initiative designed to enable access, empower teachers and inspire a lifelong love of reading. The program is rooted in the foundation set by the Pizza Hut BOOK IT! Program, which is the longest-running corporate supported literacy program, impacting more than 14 million students each year. For more information, visit www.pizzahut.com. Pizza Hut is the Official and Only Pizza Sponsor of the NFL and NCAA^®.

Contact:
Brett LeVecchio, Pizza Hut
972.338.6730 / [email protected]

SOURCE Pizza Hut