Advise Needed

• chuapcd

  24 May 08, 09:20

  Hi,

   

  I'm interested to start off as a relief taxi driver and subsequently convert to full-time, could the senior advise me which taxi company to join? Which provide the best benefits ? Thanks in advance !

• Poolman

  25 May 08, 03:38

  Depends la bro ....

  Depend on u want to go OMO when go Full time , or half a shift .

  And depends on u want to drive day shift or night shift .

  And also depends u type of vehicle u wanna drive , auto or manual , or doesn't matter

   

• Poolman

  25 May 08, 03:40

  if i were u , this is what my choice of company base on ranking .

  1.Comfort or Citycab

  2. SilverCab

  3.SMRT

  4.Smart

  5.TransCab

• Poolman

  25 May 08, 03:45

  Comfort ...although their rental is the most expensive ... but the extra cost is replaced by the effiencient MDT , so call our on-call machine .

  All taxi do have on-call machine , but it's a question of : " How frequent customer call their hotline ? "

  Comfort call is full automated .... customer like booking our cab .

  Per booking our revenue is nett $3.00 , if lucky 6 bookings per shift , it's an extra $18 profit , although rental slightly more expensive , like $3 more , worth it still .

  Comfort also subsidised the diesel cost for cabbies , and this point is important .

   

   

• ALN

  25 May 08, 03:46

  chuapcd, you mean part time relief right? if part time, not much choice... have to be city/comfort cos the pool of hirers is much bigger to find a matching partner that fits your timing/location... if full time (at least 5 days), then got more choice...
• chuapcd

  25 May 08, 10:55

  Thanks for all the advises...I'm looking at relief first. My preference will be driving CNG + Auto car if possible. Does Comfort/CityCab has CNG and Auto taxi? As relief, I need not have to worried about the $1000 deposit ..right?

• ALN

  25 May 08, 12:23

  good choice to got for auto... but CNG unless you stay near mandai or jurong, not so good now cos full tank can only go 170km... i will need to go jurong to queue 2 times per night...waste time and effort...year end, bedok and serangoon north CNG pump open then more feasible for more pple... comfort/city only got auto (sonata and merc) but no CNG relief also must pay $1000 deposit (can instalment)... accident excess is $1000 + $1000... same
• Poolman

  30 May 08, 04:21

  CNG ? And a relief ?

  Difficult leh bro ...

  The market still relatively small .

  Only Smart has got a few hundred CNG vehicles , follow by Prime , which they don't allow any relief for more than 30 days of 365 days .

  Now u are squeeze into going at Smart , hard to find la bro , if can find , good for u .

• cizzeler

  11 Jun 08, 12:58

  Finally I got the approval letter from LTA, will be starting the course next month...

  It is easy to get day time relief taxi for Comfort Hyundai Auto taxi?

• kinwashi

  11 Jun 08, 18:23

  Good Luck and All the Best, cizzler welcome on board another Kamikaze comrade into this Taxi industry.
• ALN

  11 Jun 08, 20:09

  cizzler, looking for a hirer nowadays is much easier... sonata taxi also increasing with time... if your course is not online type, can also start pairing up with course mate staying near your location... if there is really an incentive scheme recommending relief... maybe you can state my name and both of us can share the $500 token... haha good luck
• chuapcd

  11 Jun 08, 21:47

  Relief driver also need to pay $1000 deposit for Comfort? Is it the same for all Taxi company? I tot relief need not pay deposit....

   

   

• cizzeler

  12 Jun 08, 09:08

  Kamikaze? wow.. haha

  Hi ALN, thats goods news if I can find a hirer easily ... cause dun want to be a hirer so soon.. I think relief dirver will have less stress for new bird..

  Planning to do online course leh.. not recommended?

  Sonata relief must pay $1000?

  Can i pay in installment?

  I heard new taxi got no recommending scheme.. will check it out

   

   

   

   

• ALN

  12 Jun 08, 11:17

  all relief must pay deposit. amount may differ across taxi companies... comfort relief is confirmed $1000... comfort can be in 4 instalments.... i did online... saved HUGE amount of time ... classroom type is for those ah peh who got problem with everything...need to ask many things and everything damn slow... i will vomit blood.... but then it's up to you... no offence meant new cabby starts as relief is correct... only when you a bit season then consider hirer good luck
• chuapcd

  12 Jun 08, 12:06

  sorry..Just to clarify...even as relief I don't go thru the taxi companies for matching services and I source the hirer myself...I still need to pay the $1000 deposit? How would hirer know relief had paid the deposit? Does that mean if I paid deposit to Comfort, I can't be relief driver with CityCab or Premier? I have to stick with Comfort?

• kinwashi

  12 Jun 08, 12:28

  Originally posted by chuapcd:

  sorry..Just to clarify...even as relief I don't go thru the taxi companies for matching services and I source the hirer myself...I still need to pay the $1000 deposit? How would hirer know relief had paid the deposit? Does that mean if I paid deposit to Comfort, I can't be relief driver with CityCab or Premier? I have to stick with Comfort?

  
  The regulation as a relief, if you are driving comfort or city like myself i register into this two company i paid each one thosand as deposit and by instalment if you are still serving them, if you decided to stop either one of this company or both you can get your refund back. Why? i registed this two companys, chance of getting good hirer on day shift are difficult, so currently one of each offer me two days for per week. monday and saturday for comfort, wednesday and sunday city, that is how it go about.
• newtaxibies

  12 Jun 08, 12:44

  Hi I am new in being a taxi hirer. I plan to get Prime CNG taxi coz rental is cheaper for small cc model, about $74 with GST and overall fuel cost. Although I know only 3 refilling stations now and probably 5 by year end.

  Can anyone advise what is the overall cost in being a hirer?

  Is it just the deposit or we have to take care of the roadtax, maintenance, other hidden cost, and does CNG taxi have to pay diesel tax?

  Greatly appreciate your feedback.

• cizzeler

  12 Jun 08, 13:49

  Prime CNG taxi $74 onli?

  Tats cheap compared to comfort wor

  Is it auto gear one? Prime got any website to find more details?

   

   

• ALN

  12 Jun 08, 15:58

  chua, deposit is to be paid to each taxi company and not to hirer... even if you find hirer yourself, both you and hirer must still go register with taxi co... and yes, the more co you register as relief, the more deposit you pay
• chuapcd

  12 Jun 08, 16:14

  Thanks ALN...look like the initial startup is not as simple as I have thought.....

   

  Anyway, still waiting for the LTA approval then will go for the medcial checkup and signing up of course...still long way to go

• chuapcd

  12 Jun 08, 16:19

  One more question....how do relief and hirer split the diesiel cost? They normally don't pass u the car with empty tank right :)

  Also is Comfort disesel the cheapest ?

• ALN

  12 Jun 08, 16:20

  CNG? you ask the correct person liao. If i ever become hirer, definitely either comfort sonata or prime CNG.... other taxi co forget it... Prime rental is $74 nett.. very solid for a brand new auto car... even more solid is that you get 11K loyalty cash if you stay 5 yrs.....but that is where the good news stop... Prime deposit is 5K... if you quit before 5 years, deposit gone... but if you tahan 5 years, then you get deposit + 11K loyalty cash back CNG tank can last only 170km (one shift needs at least 350km)... so if you drive a lot, then expect to q and top up at least 2 times a day... so depends on where you stay Accident exccess is huge for prime... about 2.5K + 1.5K max... comfort is 1K + 1K max for hirer, just pay rental, diesel/CNG, accident excess, carpark, ERP... that all think carefully.....my advice.... Prime is for long term... newbie better dont commit first.... another thing is dun know whether prime will bankrupt after 5 years... then your deposit.....
• ALN

  12 Jun 08, 16:39

  helo kin, so now you driving 1/3/6/7? wow like FT liao haha... monday a.m.is best? and sat a.m. is worst? i never try a.m. before....
• kinwashi

  12 Jun 08, 18:26

  Originally posted by ALN:

  helo kin,

  so now you driving 1/3/6/7? wow like FT liao haha… monday a.m.is best? and sat a.m. is worst?

  i never try a.m. before….

  
  For Sat am like i said it all depend on Luck, try more Hotels, Hospitals, Polyclinics.. there is still something to pickup. After Lunch good business on estates to town. Look like Saturday is also normal, my encounter this few weeks. Collection so far so good.
• newtaxibies

  12 Jun 08, 18:44

  Thanks alot for the info ALN

  Heard if you recommend new hirer to Prime they also pay you $500 commission.

  Anyone want to work together so that we can share commission split 50/50