Driver on demand is a service that sends a trained driver, by the hour or the day, to drive the customer's own car. It is for people who own a car but do not want to drive it. They may be going to a party, travelling to another city, or coming home late after an evening out.
The customer books on an app. The app finds a driver nearby, using a digital map, and sends the driver to the customer's address. The driver arrives alone, perhaps on a folding scooter or by public transport, drives the customer's car and returns the car to the customer. Payment is by the hour or by the trip, and long trips to another city cost more, because the driver also has to travel back.
Take, for example, a family in Hyderabad that needs to drive 40 kilometres to a wedding on a Saturday evening. The father books a driver for four hours for ₹600 on the app. The driver comes to the house, drives the family there and back, and the app shows the fare at the end.
The drivers are independent gig workers, not employees, like the drivers on a ride-hailing app. Both services are part of urban mobility. The main difference is the car. In a ride-hailing app, the car belongs to the driver. Here it belongs to the customer, so the customer is handing over a valuable car. The app therefore has to check each driver: a driving licence, a driving test and a criminal record check are the usual checks. The customer's own car insurance still applies, so the app also has to be clear about who pays if the car is damaged.
A customer who wants a cab instead of a driver for their own car uses a ride-hailing app. A person who wants a full-time driver by the month hires one directly. This service fits people who need a driver only a few times a month, and do not want to employ one.