Ask most people what a chauffeur does and they’ll say they drive you around. Fair enough, but there’s more to it than that. A personal chauffeur also has to deal with managing the owner’s vehicle - keeping the cars clean, serviced, insured, registered and fueled, as well as driving the owner to business meetings and events, picking up and dropping off children to school, and managing the transport with the PA and security teams.
In practice, every day will be different. A Monday could start off with driving the kids to school, taking their dad to an important business meeting. Meanwhile, the vehicle needs to be refueled and cleaned before returning to collect the father and take him to the airport to catch a flight. Each night they’ll need to check the next day’s schedule and prepare the vehicle accordingly, so it’s always in impeccable shape. This could involve organizing servicing or maintenance work to be done, checking tires and fluids, getting the car cleaned.
More than that, they anticipate your needs. With a bottle of water in the cup-holder and the latest issue of your favorite magazine tucked away in the door-pocket, you can relax on the commute knowing your chauffeur has everything covered. They know how important your time is, and will only fill the tank in-between jobs, to save you time, and will ensure your vehicle is always ready, often 30 minutes before it needs to be, so you are never late.
All this is part of your chauffeur’s service. If they work for one family, they may look after several cars; book servicing for days when the boss is away, and keep maintenance records up to date. They also deal with the dealership.
A good chauffeur will also be messaging the PA and family all day, keeping them up to date with the traffic and the time. Keeping in touch with the PA on planning takes the pressure off the boss who can then focus on the business at hand.
Being Driven by a Driver, and Being Chauffeured
Though it doesn’t seem like it, there are quite a few differences between just being driven by a driver, and being chauffeured. First and foremost, it’s a mindset. Drivers just sit and wait till the boss comes out. A chauffeur will be one step ahead, figuring out where the boss is going, working with the PA and security team and occasionally waiting for their client outside of a meeting - checking the car, fueling up, whatever is needed.
You can tell a good chauffeur in the first five minutes. He’ll know the city like the back of his hand, without relying on a GPS, all so he can avoid traffic and get you to the airport with time to spare. A good chauffeur drives smoothly - steady acceleration, gentle braking, letting you get your rest, check a report, or deal with an issue over the phone. They understand that you need peace and quiet to work on your laptop as you travel. Therefore, they keep their conversation to a minimum. In their work, chauffeurs and drivers frequently hear things that they are not meant to hear - telephone conversations about business, other people’s finances or family arguments. They should always wait for you to speak first. They should never comment on or repeat what they overhear.
A good chauffeur also has security sense - he’s looking over his shoulder, he notices when something doesn’t look right; he’s changing route without even being asked. He keeps himself linked up to the security team.
Two Main Kinds of Chauffeur
There are two main kinds of chauffeur: the executive chauffeur, employed by a company, who drives the CEO; and the family chauffeur, employed directly by a family, who drives the children to school, or the parents to events. They will work closely with the household nanny. Sometimes a household needs both an executive chauffeur for the CEO, and a family chauffeur for the children, husband and wife.
To go alongside the responsibilities of the job come long hours, so the work of a chauffeur is not just Monday to Friday from 9am to 6pm. Things come up. If the boss needs them later, they can expect to put in the hours. Late evenings, weekends, early mornings all go with the territory.
Spending so much time together in an enclosed space means that the relationship between a driver and their client quickly becomes personal. Sharing so much of life’s trials and tribulations in the car means that a good chauffeur earns their owner’s trust in return for discretion - and once that level of mutual trust is established a good chauffeur often stays with a household for many years. After a few years, the right chauffeur will know your journeys before you’ve even asked.
Luxury Car
Some chauffeurs prefer sporty saloons or SUVs, but a chauffeur is supposed to drive what their boss has in their garage - a Bentley, Ferrari, Mercedes-Maybach etc. If they’re not comfortable driving that, they shouldn’t be doing the job. Driving a big American SUV or a German Mercedes is one thing; driving a Rolls-Royce, Ferrari or Porsche 911 is a totally different skill set. When you’re hiring a personal driver, make sure you ask what kinds of cars they’ve driven, for how long.
In New York State, you can rent a luxury car, and someone else will drive it - whether chauffeuring you to a meeting, waiting for you outside the restaurant, or driving you to the airport. Just make sure your driver is licensed and named on the rental agreement; under state law, he counts as an authorized driver if he meets these criteria.
