When inDrive first arrived in Pakistan, it marketed itself as a game-changer for ride-hailing — a platform that would empower both passengers and drivers by replacing opaque pricing algorithms with a simple peer-to-peer negotiation system. But for many drivers across major cities like Lahore, Karachi, and Islamabad, that promise has translated not into empowerment, but lower earnings, increased stress, and a deteriorating livelihood.
Drivers Caught in a Race to the Bottom
InDrive’s unique bid-based model lets drivers and passengers negotiate fares directly, but in practice this has created an environment where drivers compete relentlessly to undercut each other — often to the detriment of their own earnings. According to multiple gig workers interviewed in a Rest of World investigation, drivers find themselves pushed to accept ridiculously low bids just to stay busy, even when those fares barely cover fuel or maintenance costs.One driver in Lahore described how on a typical 11-km trip, instead of earning around PKR 300, the app nudged him to offer something closer to half that amount — and that’s what he ultimately accepted. Constantly calculating, bargaining and responding to offers is now part of every ride, and the net effect is drivers earning less money for more work.
False advertising of “Empowerment” — at What Cost?
In theory, allowing drivers and passengers to set prices together should benefit both sides. But in practice, drivers say it gives them only the illusion of control. As a labor researcher quoted in the original Rest of World report observed, the flexibility in pricing often becomes a pressure to accept whatever the customer demands — especially in a market weakened by inflation, rising fuel costs, and intense competition.Instead of stable, predictable fares, drivers are left to haggle for rates that are frequently below their own costs — driving anxiety, exhaustion, and economic insecurity. Many even long for the older fixed-fare systems offered by rivals, where there was at least some certainty of what they would be paid.
Growing Driver Backlash and Protests
The frustration among inDrive drivers isn’t just anecdotal — it has boiled over into organized pushback. In early 2025, ride-hailing drivers across the country announced a boycott of the inDrive platform in protest of low fares and unfair compensation structures. The drivers demanded a review and overhaul of the pricing system to ensure that earnings reflect real costs like fuel, bike maintenance, and daily living expenses.In response, InDrive maintained that drivers are free to negotiate higher rates or decline low offers. But drivers argue this is not enough when the system’s dynamics — and customer expectations — push prices downward.
Support Initiatives Don’t Offset Core Problems
In an attempt to soften criticism, inDrive has rolled out a handful of driver support initiatives — such as temporary commission waivers in Karachi and partnerships offering discounts on essential purchases. These measures allow drivers to retain more of their earnings for limited periods and access flexible payment plans for things like phones and bikes.Yet these gestures, while well-intended, don’t address the fundamental flaw many drivers see in the platform’s core economic model: the absence of a guaranteed, fair baseline fare that ensures drivers can cover their expenses and earn a living without constant negotiation and stress.
The Human Cost of a “Flexible” System
Beyond earnings, drivers frequently share stories of the psychological toll this uncertainty takes. Many work extremely long hours — often 10–14 hours a day — just to make ends meet, only to find that a combination of low bids, fluctuating fuel costs, and unpredictable demand leaves them on the edge financially.For drivers who once depended on predictable daily fares, the shift to inDrive’s bid system has been destabilizing. And while the platform continues to expand across smaller towns in Pakistan, this growth is happening without fundamental protections for the drivers who make the service possible.
Conclusion: Fake promises of ‘fairness?’
InDrive’s model may have succeeded in winning market share — chiefly by delivering some of the lowest ride prices in Pakistan and attracting millions of passengers — but that success has come with significant human costs for its workforce.For many drivers, the flexibility touted by inDrive is less a form of economic liberation and more a mechanism that pits them against each other in an endless quest for the cheapest fare. Without structural changes that ensure fair compensation, predictable earnings, and meaningful support, the platform’s promise of empowerment will continue to ring hollow for the very drivers it claims to put first.
