How to become limousine chauffeur. By Shirley Stewart.

Any person who wants to become Limousine Driver or Limousine Chauffeur must know how to operate a motor vehicle used to transport people for hire and must obtain a license from the Department. Vehicles for hire include taxi cabs which are passenger automobiles which have been issued a certificate by the public utilities commission, vans which are vehicles which have a seating capacity of more than five persons not including the driver, and limousines which are used to transport passengers and have been issued a certificate by the public utilities commission.

Before drivers become chauffeurs, there are a number of licenses they must obtain and skills they must learn before they are allowed to get behind the wheel of a stretch limousine and transport their passengers in comfort, safety and smoothness. To ensure chauffeur excels at this new career he will need the right training to give him the confidence to serve your passenger's every need. A chauffeur training course will teach about appropriate uniform and how it may vary depending on the event or passenger. Chauffeur will also learn about how to conduct yourself with confidence and class, how to anticipate the needs and emergency requirements of passengers, which topics he should and shouldn't talk about with passengers, driving rules concerning limousines and chauffeured vehicles, limousine maintenance, how to prepare for each passenger and how to ensure your passengers are happy and willing to reward you for excellent service.

The drivers learn the skills of driving smoothly and negotiating any traffic or parking situation which will make them into great chauffeurs. However, with the introduction of so many super stretch limousines, some chauffeurs are struggling to keep their driving skills up to the level of maneuvering these larger limousines with ease.

A person who applies for, or is the holder of, driver authorization must be a suitable person to drive a public passenger vehicle such as limousine, having regard to:

• the safety of children and other vulnerable members of the community
• the personal safety of the public, passengers, and their property
• the act of driving and capability to safely operate the vehicle
• the reputation of public passenger transport
• conducting themselves responsibly with passengers and the public
• being aware of their customer service responsibilities.

There are many ways that chauffeurs can become familiar with driving their oversized limousines and it is the professional and dedicated chauffeurs who will go to all of the trouble to understand everything about their limousine and its dimensions to ensure you have a smooth, comfortable and accident free ride. The chauffeurs make sure that there is as little blind spot area as possible and they do this by fitting extra mirrors to their side mirrors as well as actual blind spot mirrors too. Other chauffeurs simply take a short course on driving a bus as this helps them understand the turning spaces and the increased size of the vehicle they are driving.

Limousine chauffeurs must be self-motivated, well-organized leaders with great communication skills. They have to be an energetic individual with a positive and friendly attitude towards our clients. It is very important to remain professional in all situations, and have an understanding of the hospitality industry.