Dubai
Reco, a Dubai-based start-up, wants to become the Uber or Careem of recovery and roadside assistance.
Belal Guidoum, digital marketing manager and “growth hacker” at Reco, told Gulf News that the new on-demand service promises to “save time and money” for motorists by offering them pay-as-you-go recovery assistance with ‘no strings attached’.
After downloading the company’s app from iOS or Google app stores, it uses the method similar to Uber — requesting service only as and when they need it — with no annual fees or monthly charges. Once selected for the desired service, customers can then chose to pay with cash or card. Reco offers services for towing, battery, flat tyre, gasoline, accident towing, mechanical first aid and lockout.
“Once inside the app, customers can choose one of these options and the closest driver, within a 15km radius, will come to your aid. The driver can reach within 15-20 minutes,” he said.
He said that most customers think about these services only when are stuck with a problem and searches on Google for an assistance.
“The customer is charged very high price because there is no other option and you don’t know at what time the driver will reach you. Our service rates are pre-defined and are cheaper than the industry norm,” he said.
The Reco app shows the driver’s real-time location, similar to Uber or Careem, and how much time the driver will take to reach you. No need to explain your location, the app uses the GPS of your phone to locate your position so the driver knows where you are and can reach you very fast.
“We launched the app four months ago and so far, we have more than 300 partner drivers from more than 60 recovery and road assistance companies on board and have successfully completed more than 600 orders in UAE. There are others offering similar service but no one covers the entire range like we do.“
Most premium insurance companies offer this kind of services for a full comprehensive package but not for third-party insurance.
“Most of the cars on the roads of the UAE are driven with third-party insurance. We have tied up some insurance companies and provide the roadside assistance to their customers,” he said.
“We have launched a package for Dh65 in which a customer can benefit from the one of each service free for one year. When you calculate the total cost of all the seven services we offer, it will come to Dh800 a year,” he said.
He said the company’s goal is to ensure that even if your vehicle is immobilised, whether at home or while travelling, any inconvenience to you to be minimised.
The start-up intends to spread wings to other GCC countries in near future as Guidoum sees a strong demand for the service, especially in Saudi Arabia.
“We are in talks with some of the local investors in the UAE to raise cash for our expansion but we are not in a hurry,” he said.
