- In a message to drivers, ride-hailing company Bolt is offering a 15% commission kickback bonus, which has already started at 5 am and will last until 11:59 pm, as seen by Technext.
- However, eligibility depends on completing five trips in a day, meaning that the offer takes effect from the driver's sixth trip.
- Additionally, the driver is required to achieve a 40% acceptance rate and a 55% completion rate for those five trips to be eligible for the bonus.
Specifically, the Bolt message to drivers stated, “Get a 15% commission kickback bonus by just driving five trips. Just finish five trips in a day with a 40% acceptance rate and a 55% completion rate to get a 15% commission kickback bonus on all your trips.”
The acceptance rate is a metric that shows the percentage of orders drivers have accepted from their last 100 requests. A good acceptance rate is above 80%, where an acceptance rate lower than 60% is frowned at and a driver could be blocked for that reason.
A driver's acceptance rate will increase when they accept an incoming request and decrease if they ignore or reject an order from within their set driving radius.
This acceptance rating system is reportedly attributed to Bolt's declining popularity, as Uber and inDrive strive for a larger market share. Additionally, the e-hailing company is said to be struggling to keep drivers engaged on its platform.
With this offer, Bolt is lowering its acceptance rate to allow more drivers to participate, and in turn potentially drive engagement.
This is not Bolt’s first initiative to incentivise drivers. In March 2024, Bolt offered driver-partners in Nigeria fuel and insurance discounts as part of the Bolt Rewards programme.
Also, in May 2024, Bolt implemented a bidding system similar to inDrive's negotiating model, which allows drivers to negotiate prices with riders in view of incentivising them, as well as increasing riders' chances of receiving rides during peak hours. Moreover, the company has implemented incentive strategies in other African markets, including Egypt.
Aside from incentives, Bolt has launched partnerships and programmes aimed at bonding with drivers and increasing engagement. These initiatives include a recent Drivers Novelty Match in June and a partnership with credit technology company Advancly to offer short-term loans to drivers on its platform.
