Home Safe

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Home Safe: Chauffeur-on-call services as an alternative to drunken driving

New Delhi, IndiaNew Delhi, India
Year Founded:
2009
Organization type: 
for profit
Project Stage:
Established
Budget: 
$500,000 - $1 million
Website:
http://facebook.com/homesafeindia
Twitter: 
http://twitter.com/home_safe
Facebook: 
http://facebook.com/homesafeindia
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Project Summary
Elevator Pitch

Concise Summary: Help us pitch this solution! Provide an explanation within 3-4 short sentences.

Home Safe aims to establish a nationwide network of professional chauffeurs on call, around the clock to ferry consumers in the comfort of their own car, when they would rather not get behind the wheel themselves.

WHAT IF - Inspiration: Write one sentence that describes a way that your project dares to ask, "WHAT IF?"

What if we could save over 25000 lives in India, every year.
About Project

Problem: What problem is this project trying to address?

Over 15% of all fatal road accidents in India are caused by inebriated driving. 30% of all drivers in Delhi at night are driving drunk. The primary reasons are, 1. Lack of Alternatives – No options to call someone to drive your car, no concept of designated drivers and skeletal public transport at night 2. Inadequate Enforcement – Not deterring penalties, inadequate breathalysers and too few traffic police personnel.

Solution: What is the proposed solution? Please be specific!

The proposed solution is a nationwide network of chauffeurs on call, available around the clock to drive people in the comfort of their own car, when they would rather not get behind the wheel themselves. We are currently operational in the NCR area with a fleet of chauffeurs available around the clock, across the city. All chauffeurs are taken through standardized selection, testing and training processes to ensure quality, across the board. Chauffeurs can be booked on our 24x7 hotline numbers, online or through a mobile application* We work closely with bars, pubs, alcohol beverage manufacturers, auto companies and local law enforcement agencies to maximize the adoption of alternatives to drunk driving. * Coming Soon
Impact: How does it Work

Example: Walk us through a specific example(s) of how this solution makes a difference; include its primary activities.

On New Years Eve, 2012 a family of four died in a drunk driving accident, where the driver was the father, the head of the family. While being an educated person and aware of the ills of driving under the influence, he still went ahead with it. We understand this is a deep rooted problem of mindsets and take multiple routes to work towards changing consumer behaviour and increasing awareness around the issue. Incidentally, a few months after the incident, his elder brother used Home Safe. Realizing the possible option of calling a chauffeur and its utility, today he is an avid supporter and regular patron of Home Safe.

Impact: What is the impact of the work to date? Also describe the projected future impact for the coming years.

Home Safe has been actively working towards curbing drunk driving in Delhi for the last four years and in this time; we have served over 25000 customers. We currently work with over 150 bars and pubs in the city who promote the service to their patrons through various merchandise, apart from special deals. Today, Home Safe serves over 1000 customers every month, from different parts of the city and varied demographics. We actively work with various stakeholders to curb drunk driving, this includes information sharing with local authorities towards efficient deployment of resources, working on awareness campaigns with alcobev manufacturers and mobilizing residents of local areas to help tackle traffic problems.

Spread Strategies: Moving forward, what are the main strategies for scaling impact?

Home Safe aims to be the leading chauffeur on call service in India & the first choice for those going out drinking in their own cars. Key focus areas, 1 Technology–We are actively adopting technology as part of our core business. This helps us scale efficiently, whilst remaining cost effective & maintaining quality. Additionally, this opens up the potential for franchise models & an aggregator model 2.Geography–Targeting 10 cities over 5 years 3.Scope–Going forward the scope of activities for Home Safe could expand to road safety programmes, vocational training & driver certification
Sustainability

Financial Sustainability Plan: What is this solution’s plan to ensure financial sustainability?

The financial model for the service is self sustainable. There is a need for an initial investment to increase the growth trajectory and risk appetite for the business. In order to efficiently scale, we would work with small local players in cities, wherever present to decrease set up time and costs involved. Training, QC and SOP's would be brought in from central operations to ensure standardized level of service, across the board.

Marketplace: Who else is addressing the problem outlined here? How does the proposed project differ from these approaches?

We are currently the only option for anyone who needs a chauffeur on call at night in Delhi. There are unorganized players in the market, however, reliability, timeliness and quality is not accepted by most car owners. While the larger scope of alternatives to drunk driving - for those in their own cars, we remain the be the only option. However, there are taxi players who also serve as an option to partygoers.
Team

Founding Story

The Home Safe founders, having known each other for many years, arrived at the business model through the experience of a personal pain point. One of the founders is a teetotaler and was often faced with the task of ferrying friends back home after a night of drinking. After hearing tales of friends having to return the following morning to retrieve their cars or getting stopped by the police, the option of their being a service to handle this arose. After discussions, debates and dipsticks with the set of initial supporters, Home Safe was launched in 2009 as a chauffeur on call service to serve as an alternative to driving drunk in ones own car. Today, the service is available around the clock and across the NCR region.

Team

Home Safe has a diverse team spanning experience across consulting, advertising, transport and marketing. We are currently equipped with the requisite human resources required for us to scale and effectively spread the message of responsible drinking, pan India. Going forward, we would be increasing our strengths in the technology space and bringing on board affiliates in various parts of the country.
About You
About You
First Name

Nikhil

Last Name

Saigal

About Your Project
Organization Name
How long has your organization been operating?

Please select

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Project
Organization Country

, DL, New Delhi

Country where this project is creating social impact

, DL, New Delhi

What awards or honors has the project received?
Funding: How is your project financial supported?

Individuals, Businesses, Customers.

Supplemental
Partnerships

Home Safe actively works towards curbing drunk driving. We have the following partnerships in place,
a) Bars–Promoting responsible drinking & alternatives to patrons
b) Gurgaon Traffic Police–Promoting road safety & involved in various initiatives. Recently launched their official mascot–Traffic Tau
c) Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers–Road safety at AutoExpo2014
d) SABMiller India - Running the country’s largest campaign against dru

How does your idea encourage citizens to participate in making roads safer?

Home Safe aims to provide consumers the option to NOT get behind the wheel after having a few, by calling a professional, trained and reliable chauffeur to drive them back in the comfort of their own car.

We use multiple approaches to reach consumers to increase awareness around drunk driving, its perils & alternatives available. Home Safe allows consumers to let their hair down and be chauffeured stress free in the comfort of their own cars

Barriers: What barriers might hinder the success of your project and how do you plan to overcome them?

Consumer Mindset – Drunk driving in India is socially considered a non-issue, which at times implies the conscience deterrent does not exist. We actively work towards increasing awareness and engaging with consumers to change this mindset.

Vigilance – The enforcement & penalties for DUI in India are non-deterrent. We work with local enforcement agencies to help them curb drunk driving.

Additional Information
Is your project targeted at solving any of the following challenges?

Active citizenship: Projects that work to promote active engagement with road safety from individual citizens, pedestrians, communities, and social networks, or that use education as a tool to raise awareness and promote engagement, Technology: Projects that leverage technology to promote road safety, Infrastructure: Projects that address road or administrative infrastructure, emergency care, or financial systems.

Would you like your project to be considered for the Bangalore People’s Choice Prize?

Yes

If yes, how is your project applicable to the Bangalore context?

Drunk driving is a major concern in Bangalore. With local traffic police stepping up the vigil, it is imperative to ensure reliable alternatives exist for those travelling in their own cars. We aim to set up a professional network of chauffeurs by bringing our systems, processes and experiences to the city. Target to do this at speed and scale given presence of small local operators in the space.

Armed with the alternative, the initiative to actively engage with consumers towards increasing the overall awarness around the effects and consequences of driving under the influence is imperative. Deploying innovative visual aids and rigorous campaigning across digital platforms and on ground, we aim to establish drunk driving as a real issue on our roads.