Watch out Uber and Lyft, there’s a new kid on the block this holiday season.
The Russian ride-hailing app InDriver currently has over 14 million users in roughly 160 cities. Now InDriver has opened up shop in New York City. Unlike Uber and Lyft where the drivers designate the rates, with InDriver, you input what you’re willing to pay for the distance you need to go, and potential drivers will view your offer and throw out a counter-offer of their own. Some haggling here or there might take place, but once you settle on a price, you’ll be on your way.
Taxis are slowly but surely becoming a thing of the past, and InDriver is proof of this. The idea for the app started on a cold Siberian night, where the taxi drivers decided to take advantage of potential riders’ need to get out of the cold and doubled the fare rates. Not wanting to pay the outrageous prices, a Facebook group was formed where people needing riders would set their prices and drivers would take them up on their offers. And thus, the app InDriver was born.
Not only is InDriver great for passengers, but it’s great for drivers as well. The app has a minimum fare price, to ensure that passengers don’t throw in low ball offers, and what’s more, for the first six months, there will be no commission fees whatsoever. On top of that, the commission fees after the six-month grace period are substantially lower than Uber or Lyft. Uber and Lyft charge a whopping 25%. InDriver? 5-8%.
According to InDriver North America CEO Sasha Ozeran, around 5,000 drivers have been approved by New York and are ready to take you where you need to go. And who can blame them? InDriver looks to be a pretty big threat to Uber and Lyft. They are starting off their foray into America right. After all, what better place to start a ride-hailing service than in the city that never sleeps?
