In many respects, it has changed the way people travel and think about using various forms of transport (e.g. public, taxi services etc.). Uber, Lyft and Ola are some of the biggest names when it comes to ride-sharing services. The only problem is a lot of them have one big flaw in their business models: driver and rider protections. Basically, if you’re a driver, battling through a long day behind the wheel, the last thing you want is to be involved in an accident. Here’s why.
Account deactivation
If a driver is involved in an accident in one of the free rental biz, their account is deactivated (in some of the ride share agencies) if they are found to be at fault. Just like that. If your account is your only form of income, you now do not have an income stream. It is only once the accident has been cleared by both insurance companies and all vehicles have been fixed that the driver’s account is re-activated.
Moreover, if you have a history of vehicle accidents, there is a chance that one of not known businesses will refuse to re-activate your account, even after vehicle repairs have been completed. The simple fact is that the ride-sharing business model heavily favours the rider as opposed to the driver. It’s all about giving the rider convenience, often at the expense of the driver. Naturally, deactivating the driver’s account is essentially a notice of termination, which opens a wide variety of legal issues regarding unfair dismissal.
What if it isn’t the driver’s fault?
If the driver was not at fault in the accident, their account should not be deactivated. However, these types of situations can be complicated and ambiguous. Even if the driver was not at fault, they’ll be slammed with high costs (insurance, repairs, rental car) to remedy the problem.
The main problem with this is obviously lost time and salary, particularly We’ve all heard the stories about free rental drivers struggling through terrible, long days. However, not being able to work at all because they don’t have access to their car is even worse.
What about a rental?
Some of the biggest companies do offer rental vehicles to drivers who temporarily don’t have access to their car (like after an accident). The only problem with this is the fact that rental costs are very high. So, this exacerbates the driver’s problem even more. And what about if the driver can’t get access to their car for several weeks, even a month? That’s a month of no income, which most people simply cannot afford to do.
Thankfully, Rideshare Certified is not like other ride-sharing service providers. They seek to provide ridesharing drivers with the necessary support to thrive in their work environment. A lot of drivers feel under-valued and de-motivated because they often don’t receive the support they need.
Fortunately, Rideshare Certified offers free rentals to Uber, Lyft and other big companies drivers who have been involved in a recent collision. For the duration of their collision repairs, drivers now have access to free rental vehicles from over 100 Rideshare Certified Auto Body Locations. No deposit is required. This saves the driver wages they would have otherwise lost.
While the ride-sharing economy continues to grow and evolve, driver protections need to improve. Thankfully, Rideshare Certified is paving the way forward.
Cameron Dickerson is a seasoned journalist with nearly 10 years experience. While studying journalism at the University of Missouri, Cameron found a passion for finding engaging stories. As a contributor to Kev’s Best, Cameron mostly covers state and national developments.