Driver Partners drive our business and supporting them during the pandemic is mission critical for us. In view of the impact of COVID-19 on their livelihoods and in continuation of our efforts to support their wellbeing, we are partnering with Shell, one of India’s most diversified global energy companies. Through this partnership, we are facilitating the provision of benefits such as fuel, lubricants, coolants, car care products and beverages for them. 

The Uber and Shell partnership extends support to all drivers in the States of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Gujarat. Those who enrol in the benefits scheme will get Shell’s new QR-code based virtual fuel card, allowing them to easily pay for fuel and access special rebates through a network of 180 Shell sites, spread across these four States. 

Additionally, once activated, the first 10,000 driver partners in each of the four States can also avail a pre-loaded and one-time amount of INR 200, which can be used towards making purchases at any of the city based Shell stations.  

These benefits are estimated to enable savings of upto INR 1,000 to 1,500 per month per driver partner, and will further help them to enhance their average monthly net savings by 10%-20%. 

Speaking about the partnership, Deepti Behl, National Head, Shell Fleet Solutions for India said, “We are delighted to welcome driver partners registered on the Uber App as new customers of our Fleet Solutions programme in India. Ride-hailing is an important area of growth for India’s mobility market and COVID-19 has accelerated digitalisation and its value amongst our customers. Our partnership with Uber not only gives the drivers ease of fuel payment but access to a wide range of products and services at our retail stations like ready-to-eat meals and a safe place to refresh themselves during a day on the road. Shell’s new QR-code based virtual card, developed during the lockdown, caters to the changing customer needs to provide the added benefit of convenience and safety. This partnership will help  driver partners realize further efficiencies in their operations.” 

Over the past few years, we have undertaken multiple initiatives to support drivers, including a first-of-its-kind comprehensive platform, Uber Care, through which thousands of drivers got easy access to life insurance, free online medical consultations, micro-loans etc. Under Uber Care, micro-loans of INR 500 million have been facilitated till date to driver partners, and over 120,000 driver partners have signed up with our partner DocsApp for free medical consultations. 

More recently, we have disbursed grants to approximately 100,000 driver partners under our Uber Care Driver Fund. We have also been providing financial assistance to those who’ve either been diagnosed with COVID-19 or have been placed in quarantine by health officials.

Driver Partners  on our platform have always gone the extra mile for us and the Uber-Shell partnership acknowledges that they continue to remain at the heart of our business.