Driver FAQs

Click here and sign up using your Google account OR mobile number and provide your basic information to start the registration process.

Upload all the required documents. We will reach out to you once your documents and vehicle have been verified.

You can find the list of documents required for your city in the Documents section.

Registration is free. There may be costs associated with providing documentation.

The following documents are accepted:

• Australian birth certificate
• Australian citizenship certificate
• Australian passport *
• International passport (with an Australian visa) *
  

* Passports may be current, or expired within the previous two years, but not cancelled.

You can sign up with an iPhone, Android phone, or from a computer.

Using your preferred mobile number & email account, you can register at drive.olacabs.com/register

You can also visit an Ola office or Driver Meet Up, in your city. Check the Ola Drivers Australia Facebook page for details.

Document verification will be completed within 72 hours of document submission if all uploaded documents are correct.

You will be notified on completion of verification or receive an email to prompt accurate completion of your application.

Your account will be activated as soon as Ola verifies all of your documents.

After all your documents are submitted and verified, you will be sent an app download link to your registered email. You can also download the Ola driver app from the Google Play store or App Store.

Providing an ABN (Australian Business Number) is one of the required documents to sign up as a driver with Ola.

The existing tax law applies and drivers are required to register for GST regardless of their turnover.

To drive with Ola you must register for an ABN and GST.

Current drivers that don’t have an ABN and aren’t registered for GST can easily apply online HERE

You sure can!

With Ola, you choose your own hours and days. It is completely flexible. Some people use this job as their side hustle to make money on the side. Some drivers make more than $500 just driving weekends.

Check our Rate Card

To see the commissions for your city, click here. You can also earn even more with incentive rewards and peak period pricing.

Vehicles must not be more than 10 years old for all AU cities except Adelaide.

In Adelaide, vehicles must not be older than 8 years.

Currently, we do not allow taxis on our platform.

In all Australian cities, we only accept private hire vehicles on our platform.

We can get a rental car on-boarded if the driver is able to provide all the required documents.

Whether the driver is allowed to drive the rental car with Ola, is dependent on the agreement with the original owner.

If the driver applies with the rental car, we will assume that they have the consent of the owner.

*Rental vehicles are not permitted for rideshare purposes in Tasmania.

Rent a rideshare-ready car with ORIX here (NSW, QLD, WA, SA & VIC only).

Please upload a full Rental Agreement in place of insurance if you are renting a vehicle.

*Rental vehicles are not permitted for rideshare purposes in Tasmania.

Rent a rideshare-ready car with ORIX here.

Yes. If you have already completed a vehicle inspection, please upload the report in your application under the ‘Vehicle Documents’ section.

You can use your preferred mechanic for a full vehicle inspection.

You can also refer to the below to find your nearest authorised inspection service:

• ACT
• NSW
• QLD
• SA
• VIC
• WA
• TAS
• NT

A National Police Check is mandatory in Sydney and Darwin.

Sydney:

If you have a National Police Check, please upload the report in your application under the ‘Driver Documents’ section. Your Police Check must be current as of 3 months.

If you do not have a National Police Check, you can apply for one through CHECKED. Please note, CHECKED will process the police check result from appropriate Australian Government agencies and forward the results to Ola. Ola will process the Driver application based on the results obtained.

Ola will cover the cost of your Police Check if you complete it through ola.checked.com.au. The cost will be deducted from your account at a later date, once you are onboarded with Ola.

Please note, Ola retains the right to reject your application if disclosable court outcomes are found in your Police check results.

Darwin:

A National Police Check is necessary to obtain you H Endorsement.

You do not need to provide the police check to Ola, as the H Endorsement is sufficient proof.

Yes, depending on where you are located.

In Sydney:

• You need to have Unrestricted NSW drivers licence for one year with a Passenger Transport licence code (PTLC).
• You must have held an Australian Driving Licence for at least 12 months in the last two

In Brisbane, Gold Coast & Sunshine Coast:

• A Valid QLD licence not less than 12 months old is required.

In Adelaide & Melbourne:

• Your Drivers licence should be not less than 6 months old.

In Perth:

• A Full Western Australian drivers licence including F or T Extension is required. License should be no less than 12 months old.
• If F or T extension is not printed on your license, please attach approval letter along with license in your application.

In Canberra:

• A Full ACT drivers licence with ‘D’ condition is required. ‘D’ condition is added to your licence when issued with PVDA / RDA.

In Tasmania:

• Current Tasmanian drivers licence held for over 12 months with an “X” Condition.

In Northern Territory:

• You will need an H Endorsement on your license. If your licence doesn’t have the ‘H’ printed, we will be unable to accept it.

At Ola, driver and rider safety is our utmost priority. We are constantly reviewing protocols and processes as we remain committed to improving our services.

While our focus is on safety as a core value, all Ola drivers are encouraged to take out a personal accident insurance cover. Personal accident insurance covers you if you are unable to work after an accident. This means that you are financially supported while you are recovering at home.

Drivers may choose to obtain their own personal accident insurance according to what works best for them and their circumstances. We advise drivers to carefully assess their options and recommend drivers to consult a broker or financial planner to help do so.

For more information on personal accident insurance, you can check out some articles on such insurance here and here.

Training is mandatory in Queensland only.

From 1 August 2019, all drivers in QLD are required to have completed compulsory training in anti-discrimination awareness including sexual harassment, and disability awareness under section 97 of the Transport Operations (Passenger Transport) Regulation 2018.

After this date, it will be an offence to drive a rideshare vehicle without having completed this training. Penalties may apply.

Once you submit your application, you will receive an email on your registered email ID within 24 hours, with a link and details to enrol for this training.

Once the training is completed, Ola will validate the result and proceed with your application.  There is no need to upload any training document after completion of training.

There is currently no limit to the number of vehicles you can register on your account.

*Tasmania only allows a maximum of 2 vehicles to be registered for rideshare purposes per driver.

It is as simple as the registration process for your first car:

1. Visit drive.olacabs.com
2. Sign in with your registered google account/phone number
3. Upload your car documents

Once verification is done, you will be notified of its status within 72 hours.

Note: City of the new vehicle should be as per your registered city. The new vehicle should not be associated as “available” under another driver.

Yes! If you are a Driver-partner already onboarded with Ola, you can add multiple vehicles in the driver app.

1. Update your Ola driver app to the latest version via iOS (App Store) or Android (Google Play). To do this simply click on UPDATE in the App Store or Google Play
2. Once you are in your Ola driver app, jump into your driver Profile page. Scroll down the My Profile menu and you will see ‘MANAGE VEHICLES’ under the My Vehicles section
3. In the MANAGE VEHICLES app page, click on CHANGE VEHICLE
4. Once you CONFIRM, a new active vehicle will be assigned to your profile. Please restart your app if changes are not visible immediately

No, for security purposes, we don’t allow two drivers to be attached to a single car. Only when a vehicle is “terminated” from the driver that is currently registered with Ola, does it become available to be registered to a new driver.

If we receive an application for a car that is active, we contact the previous partner to confirm the termination of the vehicle from their account. Then the car can be attached to the new partner.

It takes 3 (three) business days for this to be processed and become visible in your profile on the driver app.

If you are adding a new vehicle to your profile, please allow 3 (three) business days for the new vehicle to appear. This is dependent on all details for that new vehicle, being uploaded correctly.

If you are changing your vehicle, this can happen instantly. You may be required to log out and log in again to your driver app, for the change to be visible.

You are paid daily by Ola and will receive payments as a direct deposit into your nominated bank account by the following working day.

The ‘rewards’ feature is located at the bottom of your driver app screen.

Simply click ‘rewards’ and a new page will open, showing the incentives that are valid for you. The rewards you have earned can also be tracked here. You can expect to receive your incentive reward payments within 5 working days after the incentive period has finished.

In Australia, drivers must display an Ola sticker when accepting rides.

To receive an Ola sticker, please add your details to this form to register to have one sent to you.

Ola stickers must be used when your driver app is switched ON; you’re online and accepting rides. You can remove the sticker when you are not driving.

The stickers are reusable. Have the sticker displayed at all times when driving to make your Ola driving experience, an easy one.

Watch how to apply your Ola sticker HERE

Northern Territory:

It is prohibited to display an Ola sticker or any other rideshare branding. Drivers must ensure, however, that they have a current CVL label affixed to their front windscreen, passenger side, bottom corner and must be fitted outside any glazing tint band.

*This does not apply to Tasmania

Use the Go-To feature to help you earn when you are on the way home or to a specific location to start your day.

You can select the destination that you wish to accept trips towards, twice a day. Once selected you will only receive trips taking you in that direction.

Learn more about Go-To HERE

You can update your mobile number within the driver app by going to:

More > View Profile > Update phone number.

If you have changed mobile numbers & do not have access to your old number, please send us an email at care.australia@olacabs.com

The safety and comfort of the Ola community is extremely important to us. We have strong safety measures in place, including the below:

• Your mobile number is masked from customers to ensure your privacy
• Drivers can alert their emergency contacts or call the nearest police control room immediately using the SOS button provided on the app

See how Ola supports driver safety in the driver app HERE

You can be reimbursed for the cleaning fee if a rider creates an unfortunate mess in your vehicle. To start the cleaning fee reimbursement process with Ola, follow the steps HERE

When a customer books a ride through their Ola app, we offer the booking to nearby drivers.

As a driver accepts the booking, Ola verifies the customers payment method to ensure the payment will be processed for the trip they have booked.

If the payment verification fails for any reason, the trip will be cancelled.

This entire process occurs within seconds of the driver accepting a trip. If the trip is cancelled due to a payment verification issue, the next available trip will be assigned to the driver.

1. Cancellation fee is charged to compensate drivers for the time, effort and fuel spent while trying to reach the pickup location.
2. A rider may be charged a cancellation fee if*:
   1. The estimated time of arrival of the driver is less than 5 minutes and the rider cancels the booking 3 minutes or later after the booking has been accepted by the driver; or
   2. The estimated time of arrival of the driver is 5 minutes or more and the rider cancels the booking 5 minutes or later after the booking has been accepted by the driver; or
   3. The driver has already arrived at the pickup location; or
   4. The driver cancels the booking after waiting at the pickup location for 5 minutes or more.
3. However, the cancellation fee will not be charged if the driver is delayed in reaching the pickup location by more than 5 minutes from the shown estimated time of arrival.
4. If a driver starts a trip they are ineligible to receive a cancellation fee for that same trip.
5. Cancellation fee amount may vary depending on the rider’s city and the vehicle category selected.
6. Cancellation fees charged to Ola riders will be paid to the driver, less any commission.
7. If a cancellation fee is applicable, the driver will be instantly notified within the app upon cancellation of the booking. Where a driver declines a ride after adhering to the above rules, Ola reserves the right to deny a cancellation fee.
8. Any disputes may be raised via the app.

*When the booking is confirmed, the system will calculate an estimated time of arrival (ETA) for the driver to reach the pick-up location from his/her current location. The actual time of booking acceptance is added to the ETA to amount to the scheduled pick-up time. The calculation of the ETA is based on a fixed default speed in its calculation. That is, the actual time of arrival for a car can be more or less than the ETA depending on his/her driving speed.

You can find the Rate Card HERE

No. Drivers are prohibited from picking up riders under the age of 18 unless accompanied by an adult for the entire duration of the trip.

If an adult places any child under 18 years of age in your vehicle without the adult with them, the driver must also refuse the ride.

If the driver suspects that a passenger may be under the age of 18, the driver must request to see identification from the passenger prior to starting the trip and you have the right to refuse the ride if the rider is under 18 years of age.

No, Ola does not recommend nor support doing so due to risks to customer experience, safety and insurance. These risks could include dangerous goods, illegal substances or put you in a compromising position to being liable for damage to goods. Ola recommends cancelling the ride. Please note riders taking parcels do so at their own risk.

Yes, if the rider will not travel with their parcel, you can cancel the ride and receive the cancellation fee. Please ensure you first, clearly explain that a cancellation fee will be applied if they do not travel with their parcel or goods.

You are never to accept cash payments from passengers under any circumstances – all trips and payments are managed through the Ola app. If you accept a cash payment you may be in breach of our Driver Community Rules and could face permanent account action.

You’ll need to take regular rest breaks for 30 mins for every 5 hours of driving to remain alert and keeping you and your riders safe on the road at all times. 

Driving hours include the time spent driving during a trip, the time between two trips or time spent stationary e.g. airport queue and regular rest breaks. The driving hours accumulate until you log off for 8 consecutive hours or once you reach 13 hours you will be automatically logged off for 8 hours.

Your driving hours can be found by going to the ‘Driving Hours’ section in your driver app. You will be notified before you reach 13 hours.

You will be automatically logged off for 8 hours once you have reached 13 online hours. Once you complete your end-of-shift break you can log back on and start accepting rides!

*If you are in the middle of a trip when you reach 13 hours, you will be able to complete the trip before you are logged off for 8 hours.

Ola Chat via the Driver App
We recently launched Ola Chat; a new way for drivers to find the answers they need when they need them.  Ola Chat provides instant answers to your questions in just a few clicks.

How to initiate a chat with Ola:

• Open your Driver app on your phone
• Click on the ‘Ola Care’ icon to open up the Ola Support Center
• Once in the Support Center scroll down to ‘Other help topics’ and find the topic that best matches your query
• Click on the relevant topic to initiate an Ola Chat
• Ola will first attempt to answer your question using our automated chat-bot, and if unsuccessful we will transfer you to one of our expert chat agents to help you find the answers you’re looking for
• You can access all your previous chats in the ‘Your messages’ section of the Support Center for easy reference later

Call us

You can call our Ola Care team on 03 8594 1941

Social Media

Join our Ola Drivers Australia Facebook page and send us a message via Facebook

Please be advised: Our Ola Driver Centres are now permanently closed. For all your Driver concerns please contact us using one of the methods above

How to initiate a chat with Ola:

• Open your Driver app on your phone
• Click on the ‘Ola Care’ icon to open up the Ola Support Center
• Once in the Support Center scroll down to ‘Other help topics’ and find the topic that best matches your query
• Click on the relevant topic to initiate an Ola Chat
• Ola will first attempt to answer your question using our automated chat-bot, and if unsuccessful we will transfer you to one of our expert chat agents to help you find the answers you’re looking for
• You can access all your previous chats in the ‘Your messages’ section of the Support Center for easy reference later