If there’s one thing Filipinos are really good at, it’s haggling or asking for “tawad” when paying for something. That’s something inDrive, a California-based company, is trying to bank on as it’s set to launch in the Philippines soon.
As per CEO Arsen Tomsky, the goal of this service is to solve commuters’ problems with price manipulation. The said service was born in a small town in Yakutsk Siberia, Russia, to fight “unfair transport practices.”
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The creators try to fix such problems by designing inDrive to have “freedom of choice” and flexibility by allowing drivers and passengers to haggle or negotiate fare rates.
Much like a typical ride-hailing app, the passenger will have to set the pick-up and destination points. What makes it special is, instead of settling for the set fare, the passenger and the driver will have the freedom to negotiate the exact price.
In case they don’t reach an agreement, either have the freedom to cancel the transaction.
inDrive debuted in 2021 and is now operating in 47 countries that include neighboring markets like Malaysia, Laos, Vietnam, and Indonesia.
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The company said that they “systematically look for injustices” and introduce their businesses where they can fight it.
As per Tomsky, it will depend on the slots it would get from Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) before it can start hiring drivers. They have already fulfilled the requirements to the board and are expecting to get a go signal before September. A full launch will happen before the year ends.
The company’s commission is capped at under 10 percent, which is much lower than most of the competition that are charging as much as 60 percent.
inDrive plans to “slowly” expand its business in the Philippines by starting with ride-hailing as the company also offers other services like cargo and courier services in other markets.