One of the most important considerations for any limousine service provider is the safety of its passengers. At Global Alliance Worldwide Chauffeured Services, we consider it our duty and responsibility to ensure that our passengers and their interests are as protected as possible while in our vehicles under the care of our chauffeurs. We take our safety policies and practices very seriously, for the sake of not only our valued passengers but for that of our chauffeurs, employees, and the general public as well.
Unfortunately, the advent of new app-based ride-hailing and ridesharing services under the aegis of transportation network companies (or TNCs) on the streets of many major cities has flooded the ground transportation market with many services that do not meet the same exacting standards of safety and responsibility upon which prearranged limousine companies such as Global Alliance are founded. Marketing their services on the basis of convenience and affordable pricing, these providers often scrimp on the safety regulations, licensing and insurance requirements, and proper background checks that govern prearranged limousine service (and, for comparison’s sake, even traditional city taxi cabs).
All chauffeurs employed by Global Alliance are subject to rigorous criminal background checks and regular examinations of driver abstracts to ensure that they conform to our high standards of conduct and driving expertise. Our vehicles are also subject to regular inspections by local transportation authorities to certify that they are in good mechanical working order and meet legal safety standards. Likewise, drivers, vehicles, and passengers are all covered by commercial auto liability insurance at all times, affording excellent protection for everyone involved should anything happen in the course of a trip. Such requirements are necessary for licensing of both chauffeurs and limousines in the City of Toronto, and similar regulations apply in other municipalities as well.
Neither drivers nor vehicles utilized by TNCs are subject to these same safety regulations, inspections, or checks and balances. Few, if any, are properly insured. These shortfalls in safe and prudent operating practices are of grave concern to Global Alliance and other seasoned service providers across the limousine industry, who stand as one for a sense of responsibility for our clients’ well-being while they are in our care. For this reason above all, those in the limousine industry with experience and knowledge of safety, licensing, and insurance would not recommend the use of TNCs for the ground transportation requirements of the paying public.
Ridesharing TNCs purport to offer convenience and cost savings along with a high level of service, but to the extent that they fulfill these promises (which they frequently do not, as a subsequent blog post will discuss), it is accomplished at the cost of safety and rigorous legal and licensing standards. Global Alliance Worldwide Chauffeured Services is dedicated to earning our clients’ trust by meeting and exceeding these standards and practices. This level of trust is a key reason why we should be your preferred motor carrier in Toronto and around the world.
For more information on the advantages of prearranged limousine services such as Global Alliance versus ridesharing TNCs, please visit sites such as Ride Responsibly and Who’s Driving You?.