Cars on rent: This tech-backed car subscription firm is bringing cars to its users

For Soham Shah, the inspiration to set up an on-demand car subscription service came from small beginnings. Having led chauffeur-driven services in 2005, it was easy to take Selfdrive towards its first pilot.

“It went on for almost a decade before we started piloting Selfdrive [in India]. So, Selfdrive launched back in 2012 in Pune itself,” Soham tells YourStory Gulf Edition.

In 2014, he caught the eye of a customer from Nissan Middle East, which later proved to be a critical piece in Selfdrive's journey.

“They wanted a non-brand agnostic platform where all the dealers could unanimously contribute and have an independent leasing, renting or subscription vertical for them for the cars that are not getting sold. In retrospect, setting up in Dubai and UAE made us grow significantly as a brand and as an organisation. We not only had support from the clients, but the region itself is very supportive to entrepreneurs,” he recalls.

Soon, Soham kicked off Selfdrive.ae in Dubai, with its services being offered in Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia. Selfdrive gives customers access to rent cars of their choice directly from dealers with confirmations given on the spot. The team began its operations at DTEC and today the UAE is one of it's largest markets.

Selfdrive fits right into a growing market in the region. The GCC car rental market was valued at $600 million in 2021 and is expected to reach $1,600 million by 2027, registering a CAGR of over 15% during the forecast period, a report from Modor Intelligence found.

The Dubai-based firm serves just over 20,000 customers with 65 car models from 15 brands, giving users access to its services in 45 delivery locations.

What does it offer?

Users can subscribe to cars on-demand starting from one day to 36 months and can get the leased car within seven working days. They are also free to choose from a range of options—from a simple hatchback to luxury cars—from its fleet of over 1,000 cars.

Starting from partnerships with the likes of Nissan, Renault, Infiniti, and Audi, it has close to 21 car brands and 150 dealerships under its umbrella.

The startup also plays on the exclusivity note. For instance, it recently bought a full range of Audi e-trons and made it available for renting or leasing, a feat no other company has been able to do in the middle east. “That is how we are changing the game,” he says.

Through the Selfdrive way, users can access dealerships directly for a car of their choice—eliminating the need for middlemen, in this instance, the car rental company.

“Dealers already have the inventory there with them. They have the infrastructure ready. We add an independent vertical for them to monetise their own asset class,” Soham says.

“Charges for a customer can start at AED 65 per day ($17.7), or on a monthly basis at around AED 1150 per month ($40) . Leases can typically start at AED 800, 850 or 900 per month ($217-$250),” says Soham. Users do not need to pay any add-on prices that are normally levied by rental car companies.

As for repairs, users can avail them for the dealerships directly. “If the car has a problem in the middle of the road, you just sign up, they already have 24 service bands running all throughout the country and that service quality again is taken care of,” he adds.

In comparison to a road-side hoarding, one would expect an opportunity to choose, rent, and test a vehicle to affect an individual’s buying decision more significantly. By providing an opportunity for the same, Selfdrive allots the car manufacturer access to potential customers.

Finding a niche in the Middle East

The trend of online renting a car through apps has improved. During the forecast period, the online booking segment of the market is expected to register growth, according to the Mordor Intelligence report.

At the moment, Selfdrive competes with other players like Udrive, EZhire, Ekar, Hertz, Telgani in the car rental space.

Keeping aside some initial challenges in understanding the region’s processes, establishing a presence in the Middle East has been straightforward. While the COVID-19 pandemic affected the team’s operations in India adversely, the UAE operations were not affected in a similar way.

“In the UAE, people moved for on-demand mobility. They wanted more stuff that could be easily taken and returned back. They didn't want to invest,” says Soham.

Now, Selfdrive is looking beyond the Middle East. It is all set to launch in the United Kingdom. “We will be starting our last level of operations and beta testing is going on, so that will go live in January 2023,” says Soham.

Besides this it is also considering bringing its services to other markets like Europe and US by Q2 and Q3 of 2023.

(The story has been updated to reflect the correct stylisation of the company name)