How often do you notice drivers driving alone? How often do you drive alone? Cars are often equipped to accommodate more than two people at a time. The average vehicle can comfortably seat five people (there are some exceptions). However, the majority of people drive themselves to their destinations along with multiple empty seats.

About BlaBlaCar

BlaBlaCar is a carpooling platform dedicating to reducing the number of empty seats in vehicles. BlaBlaCar pairs passengers looking for a ride somewhere with drivers that have empty seats in their cars. Headquartered in Paris, France, BlaBlaCar serves many countries throughout the world, including the following: France, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, United-Kingdom, Slovakia, Mexico, Poland, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Belgium, Germany, Ukraine, Russia, Turkey, India, Hungary, and Brazil.

How It Started

BlaBlaCar was founded by Fred Mazzella, Nicolas Brusson, and Francis Nappez. Fred Mazzella got the idea when he was stranded in Paris in need of a ride to his family’s home for the holidays of 2003. He intended to travel by train; however, there were no seats available on the train. He was forced to call his sister to get a ride. During the ride to his family’s home, he noticed all the empty seats in cars that were traveling in the same direction—and he got the idea to develop a database of empty seats to connect drivers with passengers. 

From 2004 to 2006, Fred Mazzella along with other peers developed the carpooling platform. Throughout the process, both Nicolas Brusson and Francis Nappez joined the developing company. From all the years of work and development, Comuto was born. Comuto was entered in a business competition and placed fourth out of a total of thirty-five groups that entered. The following competition, Comuto was re-entered the competition with a revised business plan. In late 2007, Comuto won first place in the competition.

The team continued to work on the company. Fred Mazzella dedicated himself to product, trust, and communication. Francis Nappez was dedicated to technical solutions. Nicolas Brusson dedicated himself to marketing, international growth, and financing. By 2008, the company had more than 70,000 using the carpool platform. 

The carpool platform gained mainstream attention almost overnight. A train strike made it impossible for travelers to get to their destination. Mazzella and his peers took advantage of the situation to send a press release that resulted in the company’s mainstream recognition. Thousands of peoples that would not be able to travel due to the train strike signed up for the carpool service and were able to travel to their destinations at convenient prices. The same occurred when a volcanic eruption interrupted flights—stranded travelers resorted to BlaBlaCar as an alternative travel option. What were inconveniences were travelers (the train strike and the interrupted air travel) resulted in the company’s boom.

Over the years, BlaBlaCar continued to expand throughout European countries, until eventually entering North and South America and introducing their services to Mexico and Brazil.

Where is the Company Going?

BlaBlaCar is well-recognized in European countries, and it continues to gain recognition in Mexico and Brazil. With its introduction to the American continents, many people have asked themselves the following question: Will BlaBlaCar come to the United States? According to reports, the company will not be providing its carpool service in the U.S. due to the inconvenience of doing so. The distance between cities and the size of the cities are believed to be problematic for the company. 

However, the company continues to grow and remains a top provider of alternative transportation. BlaBlaCar recently updated its look and design in efforts to appeal to a larger audience—to surpass the company’s current 60 million users. The company also made some changes to increase their service’s function and convenience to users. 

The company has also introduced changes that makes the service available for those who are interested in long-distance rides but who are not in major cities where access to transportation is simple. In addition to focusing more on long-distance transportation, BlaBlaCar has also recently introduced BlaBlaLines—a short-distance carpooling service targeted towards commuters.

The Risks

Although BlaBlaCar has proven to be a convenient and enjoyable service for approximately 60 million users, it comes with risks. Whenever you enter a vehicle and drive somewhere, you run the risk of being involved in an accident and suffering injuries. If you were involved in an accident while you were using BlaBlaCar’s services, you might have grounds to file a claim and receive compensation. If so, you must contact Kenmore Law Group as soon as possible. Kenmore Law Group is a firm dedicated to fighting for the rights of all victims injured in car accidents involving carpooling services. You could trust that our lawyers could provide you with the information that you need to pursue an injury claim against BlaBlaCar.