By now just about everyone has heard of ride sharing programs like Uber and Lyft that allow almost anyone to turn their own car into a taxi. Rival ride-sharing app Sidecar first broke into deliveries — now itself a crowded field. There are on-demand delivery services for groceries, takeout food, or anything at all. There are services that will deliver an oil change to your home or office. If you’re not big on driving, there are even services that enable you to rent out the family car.

In fact, transportation is the biggest sector of the sharing economy by a long shot. More than half of the $30 billion so far invested in sharing economy startups has gone to transportation services, with the majority of that investment money going to Uber.

But drivers care about income, not venture capital. Even though Uber as a company does ten times as much business, Lyft drivers can earn roughly the same money as an Uber driver. And nothing stops an individual from working for several app services, and just picking and choosing calls as they come in.

You know a disruptive business model is here to stay when new companies spring up offering support services to the disruptors. When that starts to happen, we can see that the new model is no longer disruptive; instead it’s the new normal. This is exactly what is starting to happen in the sharing economy.

Here are three services aimed at the workers delivering passengers and products for ride share app companies:

Get a New Car and a New Job at the Same Time

Breeze offers a weekly lease on a brand new Prius, aimed directly at workers in the on-demand economy. This short-term business lease offers several advantages to drivers who plan on taking their on-demand driving seriously as a business.

There are plenty of qualified, courteous drivers who would love to work for a service like Uber or Lyft, but they don’t already have a nice enough car of their own. Or they want to drive for the higher paying services that require a vehicle newer than the one they are currently driving.

With Breeze, qualified drivers can lease a brand new Prius for use in ride share and delivery businesses in the app economy. The vehicle is guaranteed to qualify for higher grade vehicle ratings and driving rates with many services.

The lease is as flexible as the job is. Drivers can lease the vehicle on a short-term basis and continue as long as they like. After a minimum four-week lease period, the lease goes week to week with just two weeks notice needed to cancel.

Having a business vehicle lease helps keep accounting straight too since the entire cost of a business lease is normally tax deductible — check with your accountant to be sure. And Breeze offers $200 cash back on signing.

Car Insurance a la Carte

MetroMile delivers car insurance by the mile. The premium amount each month fluctuates with the amount of driving you do. More time on the road means more time at risk. MetroMile lets you pay to insure only the driving you actually do.

More importantly, MetroMile directly integrates with your ride sharing app so that it knows when you are working or not. When you carry a passenger for Uber, you and your passenger are covered by the company’s commercial auto policy. MetroMile detects when you have a passenger and does not charge you for those miles.

Not only does this practice save you money on insurance, it saves you the from any gap in coverage due to undisclosed activities. MetroMile knows you are driving professionally, but the integration means it doesn’t cost you any extra. Who covers what and when is clearly spelled out and tracked to the minute.

Shared Experience in the Sharing Economy

SherpaShare helps drivers for on-demand services better track mileage and other expenses, as well as earnings. This helps to get a better picture of the health of your business and to put you in a better position at tax time.

SherpaShare also provides a heat map that shows where the other drivers in your area are working. The app even provides a social platform so you can chat in real time with other app workers in your area.

Interested in being your own boss?

LEASE A NEW PRIUS WITH BREEZE

become a new driver with Lyft

Sign up with Breeze for a new Prius, then sign up to drive with Lyft or any other service you like, and start setting your own schedule. Sign up through the links on this page to support this site.

Best of all, using these links earns you a cash back bonus, too.

• Get $200 back on signing with Breeze, and
• Get up to $750 signing bonus with Lyft, depending on what city you’re in.

Thanks for your support!