Mandurah Shofer takes on Uber, taxis

Shofer is a Western Australia-wide driver on demand service that operates like a private chauffeur, you can pre-book the services as far in advance as you need and they will show up at the pick up point to take you to your destination at a pre-arranged fee.

Users can download the Shofer app on their phone to book at trip or can call their local drivers to arrange it.

Unlike other competitors such as Uber, Shofer drivers only use Shofer cars they sublease from the central office in Balcatta, which are brand new, up-to-date, monitored 24 hours a day, tagged cars, with both security cameras and a dash-cam. 

They are fully serviced and maintained every five to 15,000km and include a panic button for both the driver and the passenger. 

The system has ticked all the safety boxes, and has received the green light from both RAC and the Department of Transport.

“I think the biggest factor is that we are fully insured, we have ticked all the boxes required by the Department of Transport, and with our safety features it’s a huge point,” local Shofer driver Jeanette said.

“If someone was concerned about the ethics of our company, RAC have ticked all the boxes.

“And if anyone has RAC membership then they get an automatic 10 per cent off every ride.”

Users also get a closed fee upfront when they book the service and they can request to have a male or a female driver.

All the drivers have an F endorsement in their license, haven’t had any car accidents for the past two years, have no demerits and hold a federal police clearance.

“The thing with our competitor is that you can not request a female driver, they will give you a rough estimate on price so it could be from $25 to $150, you won’t really know until you get to the end,” Jeanette said.

The Shofer system was first developed and tested in Milan, Italy.

After the system’s success, it was imported to Perth earlier this year.

The current Shoffer fleet has 90 white Toyota vehicles, and eight different drivers who are prepared to cater for the Rockingham and Peel areas.

The Mandurah and Peel franchise branch, the Shofer Dolphin Crew, is made up of local drivers Sean and Jeanette, who both have experience as professional drivers.

They said the take off has been a little bit slow in the region but they are hoping it will pick up soon once people realise there is an alternative.

The team is currently in talks with the Visitor Centre and major local hotels to promote the service.

They already have some regular clients and pre-booked trips as far as September.

“The Mandurah cabs have had pretty much a monopoly down here, there are not even many Ubers down here,” Sean said.

“We are 20 to 30 per cent cheaper than a taxi.

“We have to say ‘hello, there is an alternative’ that’s a lot cheaper than jumping to the guy [taxi driver] across the road.”

To know more about the service in the Mandurah area go to the Shofer Dolphin Crew Facebook page.