Dubai Car with Driver: Overtime & Mileage Rules Explained

With a Dubai car hire and driver, you are charged for time and not distance. A half day is five hours, a full day is ten hours, after that is the car’s regular hourly rate. In Dubai, there is no metering of kilometers driven inside Dubai. Distance charge is only levied on leaving the emirate.
This is the simple answer. The longer one because most of the billing disputes in this business is simply from one misunderstanding, which is the time the clock begins. Since 2011, we’ve been booking chauffeurs at White Line Limousine and over these 15 years, there hasn’t been any difference. The rate is seldom a topic of debate with clients. They discuss the minutes, no one explained.

The clock will not start when the walk out from the lobby but at the time of the booking. Our chauffeurs are here 5 minutes before you are scheduled and the vehicle is yours as soon as you are in it or just about to finish breakfast at the hotel.
It will stop at the last drop off. Between the counts, too, wait time, for the vehicle and the chauffeur is yours. If the car hasn’t moved for two hours, the two hours of your package will still be used at the restaurant in Downtown Dubai.
That is why Dubai rent a car with driver packages are constructed in blocks. Five hours is good for a morning of meetings or for going to the Mall and dinner in the evening. The duration of 10 hours is ideal for a working day, a full city tour or a round trip to Abu Dhabi with a few hours of on the ground time.

White Line Limousine charges overtime on top of their regular rates for each hour. No penalty multiplier and no premium for being late. Over forty minutes late for a meeting in Business Bay: You pay for the time, not a fine.
That comes out at about AED 70 to 80 an hour for base sedans, such as the Lexus ES 300h. Once you book vehicles larger than a standard car, they will have a different hourly charge that will be displayed in your booking.
A practical lesson from experience. If one can tell that the day is going on too long by early afternoon, let the chauffeur know that. If the package ends at two, it’s easier to have an extension agreed upon at 2 than at the time of the package’s end, particularly during busy weekend evenings when the car may have another reservation.
If this overtime becomes a habit, it’s a bad deal. If a client books five hours each time and is running to seven hours, it would be better for them to book in for the full day; if the business books in the same hours, week in and week out, they should consider a  monthly car with driver arrangement instead.

There are no mileage limits and no charges per kilometer in Dubai. The price of Jebel Ali to Dubai Creek Harbour and then back to Jebel Ali is the same as around DIFC – you are paying for the hours.
This comes as a surprise to those who have taken European cars, which have a standard daily car allowance. In Dubai it’s not the distance that eats up the day, it’s the traffic. Half past five on Sheikh Zayed Road can make a 20 minute run a 1 hour run – and at a time-based booking, an hour is an hour. It takes a plan made in geographic order, and the package goes on and on! For a Dubai city tour, go around the city once, in the morning visiting Old Dubai, and in the afternoon the Marina side of the city.

Distance supplement is applicable to trips to Abu Dhabi, Sharjah or Ajman as well. We confirm it before you book, so it is never added afterwards.
Only Abu Dhabi is the one who needs to plan carefully. With normal traffic, a trip there and back takes about an hour and a half, and a whole ten hour package is spent travelling before anyone eats lunch before and after the meeting. The Dubai to Abu Dhabi car service is generally more suitable for a one way car service than an all day service.
Sharjah is a straight-forward little city but a long, tedious one in rush hour: It is certainly known by anyone who crosses it on Al Ittihad road towards Dubai in the early morning. Include the traffic or distance – whichever is more – and let us know if you are going further to Ajman , so that we can quote the correct supplement.

There is a package rate that includes fuel, Salik, VAT, insurance and regular parking. As you go through the Salik gates, you pay the tolls, but they don’t show up as an additional line on the bill. If you wish to learn more about tolls throughout the city, you can view the Salik’s pricing and gate network on Salik’s official website.
The one exception is an airport parking. The car parks of both DXB and DWC are subject to a separate charge since the airports charge separately. It’s the smallest but the most requested one.

The rules are short and sweet. Overtime at the regular hourly rate (5 or 10 hours depending on the time), no mileage meter in Dubai, an additional amount (stated) for other emirates, fuel, Salik, VAT and normal parking are included. What makes them work is a firm which clarifies them before, not after the booking.
As a single individual, family or corporate group, you can choose to hire our corporate chauffeur service or an hourly rate service—from the Lexus ES 300h to the Rolls-Royce. If you are planning a trip, let us know and we will let you know which package is the best for you and the price of the package before confirming it.

What is the overtime charge for a car with driver in Dubai?

After the 5 or 10-hour package is over, overtime will be charged at the car’s regular hourly fee. No penalty rate. This is a specific number per hour which is specified during the booking confirmation and will vary depending on the type of vehicle selected.

Do there exist any kilometer restrictions on a car driven by a driver in Dubai?

No mileage limit or mileage fee for journeys inside Dubai. Time spent is money spent, and the route and the traffic are more important than the distance being covered.

Does waiting time count towards my hours?

Yes. After bookings have begun the car and driver will be booked solely for your use and you will be charged for any time spent waiting at meetings, restaurants, or malls as you are for driving time.

Do Abu Dhabi or Sharjah have extra charges for trips there?

Yes. When travelling to Abu Dhabi, Sharjah or Ajman, an add-on distance charge will be applied, as confirmed prior to booking. It is never added to the invoice afterwards without your agreement.

What is NOT covered in the package?

The standard exclusion is for parking at the airport. The quoted price includes fuel, Salik toll, VAT, insurance and standard parking.

Is it possible to renew my reservation for the same day?

Yes, provided the next booking for the car. Let your car service representative know as soon as possible (usually as early as early afternoon) and the additional time will be charged at regular rates.