Safety

What is actually checked, what is not, and who to call.

In an emergency

Call 911 first and tell us afterwards. An app is not an ambulance.

What Ryde checks

• Drivers. A driver cannot go online without the taxi's certificate of title (registered as a taxi), its vehicle licence and passenger insurance in date, and a driver's licence with the taxi class. Each is given as a photo and checked by a person at Ryde, and a renewal counts only once its photo is checked. Ryde relies on the documents shown and does not licence or insure drivers.
• Rental companies. A company's vehicles can be booked only while its trade licence and each vehicle's permit and insurance are checked by Ryde from their photos and in date. A vehicle a company adds can be booked once its papers are checked.
• Rentals. Before handover the company checks your licence covers the vehicle, records its number and expiry, and must refuse if it does not. Every motorcycle comes with a helmet: wear it. The vehicle is walked round with you at handover and return, noting fuel and damage.
• Trips. The route is recorded while a driver is on a trip, to help settle any dispute.

Before you get in

• Check the taxi's plate and the driver's name in the app.
• Your driver asks for your pickup code before the trip starts. Do not set off without it.
• Share your trip with someone you trust in one tap.
• If your driver's phone goes quiet after accepting, the app lets you call them or find another taxi.

Insurance on rented vehicles

This is not settled across Ryde: it depends on each company. Ryde carries no insurance of its own. Every rented vehicle must carry third-party insurance, which protects other people; it does not normally cover the vehicle itself, theft, or you. A company may offer cover when you book: read what it covers, and ask the company before you drive away. Taxis are different: a driver cannot go online without passenger insurance in date.

If a rental breaks down

On your booking, tap Problem with the golf cart? (or the car, ATV or motorcycle). It sends the company what happened and where you are, by WhatsApp, so it can come to you. After an accident, call 911 first if anyone is hurt.

Riding and driving in Belize

• Never drive after drinking.
• Wear a seat belt where one is fitted. Most golf carts have none and nothing between you and the road.
• Children sit inside the vehicle, not on a lap or the back step.
• Night roads, especially north of the bridge on Ambergris Caye and on the highways, are dark. Slow down. Sand and rain together make a road slick.

Something wrong?

For anything about a vehicle or driver, call the driver or company first, as their number is on your trip or booking. For anything about Ryde, email [email protected] or message WhatsApp +501 613 5737. Report a safety concern in the app and we will act on it.