How to become a Bolt driver in Nigeria

10 Jan 2019

No schedule, no boss, good pay. Are you in it to earn extra money besides your 9-5 or make money driving just a few hours on a weekly basis? Or maybe you want to become a full-time Bolt driver earning approximately N120,000 a week? Read this to know all you need to hit the streets in only a few days.

Becoming a driver in just three steps

Here’s a simple instructional video that takes you through the process:

For starters, every Bolt driver in Nigeria must meet a minimum age requirement and possess some valid documents.

Driver requirements:

  • Hold a valid driver’s license
  • Attend driver training for service quality and use of the Bolt driver application
  • A smartphone with GPS
  • A clean criminal record
  • Additional documents for Lagos: LASDRI Card, Driver Badge and LASRRA Card

Vehicle requirements:

  • A vehicle: manufactured in 2003 onwards, 4 doors, fully functional AC
  • Vehicle licence
  • Insurance certificate
  • Proof of ownership
  • Certificate of road-worthiness
  • AutoGenius Vehicle Inspection Report
  • Additional documents for Lagos: State Hackney Permit and a vehicle body tag for all routes

If these are covered, then all it takes to join is signing up. After registering your details (which you can do in under 5 minutes), you will receive an email with all the necessary information about upcoming training and information about getting your documents inspected.

Once registration is completed, your vehicle has to be inspected and certified by any of our registered inspection centres. You can find your closest one here.

Up next is completing the compulsory training. You can go through the training from the comfort of your own home — you will need to take the training remotely and pass 2 tests. Don’t worry, you’ll get all the answers from the video training.

Following your training, it usually takes between 3-4 hours to get your account ready — so you can hit the streets in no time!

Should you require further information, click HERE to chat with us on Whatsapp.

Download the Bolt Driver app and pick up your first passenger

First, you will need to download the Bolt Driver app on your smart device (Android, iOS). To start using the app, log in with your chosen username and password. You will receive your login details directly to your email after your driver application has been approved.

Using the app is easy:

  • Swipe right to go online and set your driving radius
  • When you get a ride request, you will instantly see the pickup address, the distance to the passenger and the estimated time of arrival
  • Swipe right to accept the request — you have 20 seconds to do so
  • When you have reached the pickup point, swipe right to notify the passenger that you have arrived

If your rider is not with you 4-5 minutes after reaching their pickup point, call them. You can find the option to call the passenger when you click on the three stripes in the upper right corner. If they don’t pick up, you can cancel the ride after 5 minutes. While this scenario of a rider not showing up is more the exception than the rule, your activity score won’t be affected if you mark “client did not show” as the reason for cancellation.

When you reach the set destination, swipe right to end the ride and wish your passenger a good day. Politeness is key in keeping your riders happy and ratings high. You can read more about improving your ratings here.

Getting paid

Customers pay for Bolt services in two ways — in cash or via card. Cash payments go directly to the driver while card payments reflect in your ending balance and are remitted at the start of each week.

If you are eligible to receive a payout, we will send the funds out during the first half of the week. Depending on your bank’s processing time, the funds should take between 1-2 business days to reflect in your account.

On average, Bolt drivers in Nigeria can earn up to N350,000 each month.

Any extra costs?

No monthly or hidden fees — Bolt only takes 20% commission on each trip, meaning that you get to keep 80% on every trip. If you want to get more detailed information, please contact us at nigeria-driver@bolt.eu.

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