When we look at the question objectively, we can weigh the numerous pros and cons of both business models all we want, but first, let’s face the big question before we even start the discussion.
How many professional drivers do you think are working for those ride-sharing companies?
The answer: probably not too many. Then the second logical question follows.
Why not choose a luxurious vehicle, from a pro company that is wholly licensed?
The limo and taxi companies are continually updating their services to better tend to your every need in a car service. Ok, let’s dive deeper into the topic.
Pro driver vs. Amateur
First, choose the full-time, professional drivers instead of the part-time, average, drive their own, sometimes clunker, vehicles. When you choose a licensed car and limo service, you are actually getting a lot more than just a nice ride. These drivers are professional employees who are full-time. Ironically a significant portion of the clients thinks that the drivers are working this profession as part-time, which in reality is only valid for ride-sharing services like Uber and Lyft.
Pro drivers are even paid a fair living wage to be your driver, unlike those who drive their own vehicles, which are probably not near as nice as a limousine, to earn a little spare change, and sometimes even begging you for tips. How, not professional of them.
A professional driver is just that. They aren’t the speed demons from Uber who zip around everyone.
Quality of the Vehicles
With a professional company offering limo services, you get calm, relaxing, not life-fearing rides. Every professional driver has a clean driving background and treats customers like they are royalty. All that is mandatory, and you can expect to get the same experience every single ride (well at least on paper, there are exceptions as always). On the other hand, booking Uber is like Russian roulette. You can get a decent service once in a while.
Next time you call an Uber driver, just remember their vehicle isn’t as clean or comfortable as a limousine or car service would be. A car company could be driving anything from a town car, with a lot of extra room, to luxury sedans and SUVs, or even high-end stretch limousines that will definitely make you want to call them every time instead of a dirty, no space, no trunk vehicle, of someone you don’t even know.
You don’t want to use an Uber to go pick up a very important client. With a professional car or limo service, you can guarantee you will get what you want, and pay for every single time. There is always the guarantee that you will get a sleek, clean, roomy vehicle every time!
The Prices: Myth vs. Reality
Prices with a car or limousine service are easy to understand and much more fair than those of a ride-sharing app. For long-distance trips, you can even negotiate on the pricing by merely talking with the dispatch of pro companies, unlike Uber.
A lot of times, trusting a car company would be a much cheaper alternative than calling an Uber would be. Sometimes their prices hit up to almost 10 times what the normal going rate is at times when demand is at its highest point. This is called “surge pricing.” That’s absurd, why not just call a car service, I’m sure their rates will be just as reasonable. They don’t have any tricks up their sleeves to leave you in awe of how expensive that 15-minute ride was.
Safety
With a professional company, you are a lot safer than you could be getting into a dinky car with a complete stranger. You don’t know how many traffic violations they have had before they clear off your record in 3-5 years. The potential error rate of an unsatisfactory driver for Uber is almost 45 percent, while with a professional car or limousine service, their rate for errors is a measly 1 percent. That’s a huge difference.
Car services set the bar higher than Uber does. Along with a very thorough background check, they have licensing requirements along with a drug test also. Car services rely on their good reputation, so they are 99 percent sure you will get the experience that you want out of car service. Feeling comfortable and relaxed is their primary goal. With an Uber, I can barely let someone I know drive me in my car, let alone a complete stranger, in their car.
Final words
These are just a few reasons why you should go in a car or limousine service instead of an Uber driver to pick you up from the airport, or even picking up clients from the airport. There will always be room in a car service vehicle compared to that of some random person you don’t even know the vehicle. Car and limousine services are very respectable and professional in their job and will treat you like royalty, unlike those of an Uber driver would. They are also cleaner and full-time employees, and not independent contractors through a cell phone application.
Through the years, we witnessed an increasing number of bad practices from Uber that lowered people’s trust in the company, and by now we can clearly see the hype is gone, people see the company for what it is, namely a cheap compromise.
With car services, you will not be asked or even mentioned anything about giving your driver a tip, as that is very unprofessional. They go through extensive background checks leaving only one percent margin for error in hiring, unlike the whopping almost 45 percent margin of error that Uber has for their drivers.
I hope next time that you want to call an Uber to pick you up from the airport, you think of calling a car or limousine service instead. I am sure you will have a much better experience than you would with an Uber.