Miami’s Newest Rideshare App Lets You Name Your Own Price
inDrive is the newest ride service in the U.S.
While it’s standard practice to haggle over the price of a taxi ride in some other countries around the world, that was never the case in the U.S. until now.
A new app called inDrive is bringing that time-honored tradition to South Florida this week. The service—which is already active in 655 cities and 48 countries—creates a virtual way to negotiate the price of a ride that can save you some serious money. When it rolls out in Miami this week, it’ll be the app’s first expansion into the U.S.
The concept is pretty simple. You open up the app, then put in your location and destination, just like you would with other rideshare apps like Uber or Lyft. The only difference is inDrive also allows you to enter a price you think is fair for the ride.
Drivers in the area are then alerted to your offer and can accept or send a counteroffer. Before selecting an offer, you can see where the drivers are, what kind of car they drive, and other important information, giving users a little more choice than with other apps.
“You get to negotiate in a safe environment with safe pricing, and you get to choose.” says Eddy Velazquez, inDrive’s head of driver operations. “This isn’t driven by algorithms or [set] pricing. If you’re at a concert and trying to get out, you’re paying all kinds of premiums. This empowers drivers and passengers, and we’re excited to get into South Florida.”
Perhaps surprisingly, Velazquez says this process doesn’t take very long, despite the back-and-forth negotiation.
“It takes moments,” he says. “It’s not an inconvenience with this back and forth. You’re getting multiple bids coming in and you can select your choice. It’s not wasting any time.”
Velazquez says inDrive’s appeal extends beyond the rush of the deal, as passengers will pay on average much less than they do with Uber or Lyft. Drivers make more money as well because inDrive takes a smaller commission from the drivers than other apps, averaging about 10% across its 655 cities. What’s more, for its first six months in Miami inDrive is waiving its commission completely.
“Because of commission, drivers can provide significant savings for passengers by earning more for their time and distance,” says Velazquez. “So creating the environment allows hefty savings for passengers and even more earning potential for drivers.”
Velazquez says the company has seen great success in Latin America, gaining early adoption in places like Colombia, Nicaragua, and Brazil. In those countries, it also offers city-to-city rides, plus courier and freight services. Those won’t be available in Miami right away, but if all goes well you may also be able to use inDrive to pick up furniture or go from Miami to Tampa one day.
Velazquez says inDrive is also looking into adding a feature that lets you know if a driver is bilingual, a valuable option in Miami where many drivers and passengers speak only English or Spanish.
For now, inDrive will be available across most metro South Florida, from Jupiter down to the Keys. How much it will save you remains to be seen, but at the very least it’ll add a little excitement to the usual rideshare pickup process.