What is it Like to Drive for HopSkipDrive?

Uber and Lyft aren’t the only rideshare platforms out there, and it’s worth taking a close look at a few key competitors who have gained traction in the market. One of those companies is HopSkipDrive, a rideshare platform for minors.

The Rideshare Guy contributor Uber Girl Paul drives for HopSkipDrive, and recorded a great in-depth video about her experiences there. Take a look at Paula’s video and scroll to the video transcript to see everything she covers.

Hi guys! My name is Paula, and some of you guys already know me as Uber Girl Paula. Today I’ve been asked to talk for Harry, The Rideshare Guy, all about HopSkipDrive, and I seem to be parked at a school right now. That’s a little clue what HopSkipDrive is all about. So stick around guys and hear what I’ve got to say about HopSkipDrive.

What is HopSkipDrive?

HopSkipDrive is a rideshare platform for minors ages six to 17. The children can ride in the car without an adult present. It’s not a new platform: It’s actually been around since 2016!

It was set up by three working mothers who had to get their kids to school. They’re busy with work, they had to get them to play dates, to piano lessons, ballet lessons, drum lessons, tutor lesson. I know it, I’ve been there. This is an awesome platform if you’re a working parent and you need to get just your child home from A to B.

It’s so much safer than an Uber because, again, you can’t take minors in an Uber without an adult present! They’ve always got to be accompanied by an adult to use Uber. That’s what HopSkipDrive is all about.

What are the requirements to apply for HopSkipDrive?

The number one thing you need to like is children.. You’ve got to deal with them every day, depending on how many times you’re taking a trip. You must have at least five years of childcare experience. That could be as a mother, teacher, a nanny, a nurse, a librarian, all these things qualify for childcare, so have five years of that.

For the senior care, (because they do seniors too), you have to have at least five years of care with the seniors also. They do hire male and female drivers, not just females. You also have to also be 23 years of age, you must have a very clean driver’s license, you have to pass a background check, and also they fingerprint you.

How to sign up to drive with HopSkipDrive

First, you need to visit HopSkipDrive.com and sign up there. They will ask you about your experience with children, and they want you to explain your childcare experience. You fill out the questionnaire and everything and you also submit your driver’s license, your current registration and insurance for your vehicle. Now, make sure your name’s on the insurance!

Upload all the documentation, registration, license and insurance. HopSkipDrive is not a TNC, it’s a TCP, so it’s a wee bit different there. It’s not like TNC for Uber. You need to upload a picture of your car and the license plate, because the child needs to know what they’re actually looking for.

Upload all that and you’ll receive a text very quickly back from HopSkipDrive saying, “Thank you submitting your documents. They’re being now reviewed. We’ll get back in touch with you.” It’s that easy. Also, if you use my number, Paula149, you should get a sign-up bonus. If it’s San Francisco area, I think it’s $100. Down here in Southern California it’s $20. I would check. The same goes for Denver, Colorado. Right now it’s $20.

HopSkipDrive orientation

Once you hear back from them they’ll set you up for orientation. You can pick the date you want to go, but you must do it, you must do it because that’s when the car gets inspected, and they also want to meet you in person. That’s another good reason for the orientation because they want to see who’s going to be driving the children. It’s kind of like an interview to meet the drivers.

My orientation was actually done in Los Angeles. They were so nice and I got to see how they’re operating everything. At orientation you’ll get your fingerprints taken by TrustLine for the TrustLine Registry, which is awesome because you can apply for all these great jobs, that you’ve had a really good background check, you’re fingerprinted. It’s also helping me with other rideshare platforms for minors too.

How does the HopSkipDrive app work?

The app is not an algorithm that’s pinging you or anything like that. It’s very different from Uber, and Lyft, and Juno and Via and all these other rideshare platforms. Another thing about this app that I really, really like is that you cannot download it from the Play Store or iOS at the App Store. You can download the passenger app, but you can’t download the driver app. It has to be emailed to you. Then, with that link, you can download it. So that’s slightly different too.

The app will give a schedule of all the available rides, and coming up for the following week. It shows the estimated fare, and it shows you the pickup point location. It shows you the pickup location and it will show you the drop off location. I mean, what could be easier than that? You put them into your basket, you have a little cart, and so you drop them in there and you have five minutes to claim those rides.

If it’s something you’re really want to do, you should claim it as soon as possible because it will disappear. Then you also get the pre-arranged rides that are recurring, and that’s called a ride series. Those are recurring rides where, let’s say, you take little Jimmy to school every day. That will be maybe for a month or something, and it’s great if you get onto the ride series.

When you want to find out about your series you just click over to here. Now, anything that is highlighted in the dark gray there, as you see on the screen for Friday, February the 15th, that’s the series. And then wipe over and look at all these rides I have already, all pre-planned. It’s given me an estimate of $162.36 I should make for that whole series. You see the 15th it’s open, because on the 15th right there I have a 7:30 trip, so I can’t claim that one.

If your cancellation rate drops, that does affect you from claiming the ride series. The app also shows your waybill and everything for your TCP license for HopSkipDrive.

The HopSkipDrive ratings system and driver tracking

There is a rating system on the passenger side. Passengers can give you a thumbs up, and you’ll get an email at the end of each week saying you’ve had so many thumbs up. You are being monitored too when you’ve picked up the child and you’re en route. They are tracking you very, very carefully.

Uber does that as well when you’re using the app. Everything is tracked, even acceleration and braking, and you don’t want to see bad feedback on your weekly report because they will clamp down on you. Be careful out there!

Thank you for watching. Tune in the next time to hear what more I’ve maybe got to say about HopSkipDrive. Remember to subscribe if you haven’t already subscribed! Thanks for watching and reading.