While Bolt and competitor CityBee provide very short-term rentals, sometimes measurable in minutes via their apps, at the other end of the scale lies the long-term option which appeals to taxi drivers who naturally need a car to carry out their work.

These longer rental periods can be months long.

As a result, behind the wheel of Bolt taxis which have been gradually filling the streets of Tallinn and some other towns in Estonia are usually not the owners of those cars.

Given the burgeoning sector, full-service packages are now offered by a wide range of rental firms.

These rental companies have three main input costs: vehicle maintenance, insurance, and financing, a market spokesperson said.

Bolt says it does not dictate which rental firm drivers should choose, though it does have cooperation agreements with several.

Oscar Rõõm, head of Bolt's ride-hailing service, told ERR: "These partnerships do not provide drivers with direct advantages — order distribution is determined by algorithm and remains equitable for all drivers, regardless of where the car gets rented from."

One rental company presenting itself as a Bolt partner on its website is Car4Rent OÜ, also known as Bpartner, which, in addition to cars, offers the electric bikes often used by Bolt food couriers.

Bpartner's car rental prices start at €160 per week, or €25 per day, while the company also assists drivers in processing documents such as service and vehicle registration cards.

The company reported 2023 revenues of €1.083 million and profits of just over €116,000.

Expenses on vehicle insurance amounted to nearly €193,000, while car maintenance and repairs cost approximately €128,000, the company said.

Rõõm added that the companies listed as partners on Bolt's website are considered reliable mainly because they have been on the market for a lengthy period of time and so have a track record.

This in turn should make the rental process easier and more hassle-free for drivers wanting to work.

Another company Bolt drivers rent cars from is RW-Rent, whose board member Tauno Liiv said while this is not their main business sector, their fleet size still varies between 70 and 100 vehicles depending on the season.

Liiv said while the number of rental car providers has continued to increase, this has now reached equilibrium with no space for new players.

"The market is oversaturated," Liiv said, adding that this trend has emerged only in recent years.

A decade ago, the gig economy was not yet in full swing and both long-term and short-term rental cars were in much lower demand.

People who did rent a car tended to do so via more traditional companies and for a middling period of time, for instance when on vacation in Estonia.

Ten years ago, Bolt as a brand did not exist. The company was in its infancy, having been founded as Taxify, in 2013.

RW-Rent's revenues have grown year on year, reaching €1.229 million in 2023, when a profit of nearly €46,000 was posted.

Revenue has also increased annually for another market player, Taxifeer OÜ. This exceeded €479,000 in 2023, at a profit of nearly €115,000.

Taxifeer board member Erko Kalmholm said their fleet currently consists of 70 cars, with more being added.

He agreed that competition in the market is intense, meaning to stay in business, companies have to monitor the conditions offered by competitors.

This leads to choice for drivers too, he added.

"Drivers have plenty of options," Kalmholm said.

"Larger firms will probably keep growing, while smaller ones can come and go, or shut down. It is challenging to sustain a business with a small fleet — you need a larger operation."

Kalmholm noted that their cars are slightly higher-end than the average for taxis, featuring more extras, which also affects prices.

The company rents vehicles both to Bolt drivers and for general purpose use.

Cars are usually rented for longer periods with the average rental period being between six months and a year, Kalmholm added.

Taxifeer rents cars that are mostly five years old with high mileage, but they also have both new and older vehicles.

Rental prices vary based on factors like rental period, car type, and usage, making it difficult to specify a fixed rate.

RW-Rent follows a similar flexible pricing model, but there is often a gap between driver expectations and actual costs.

Both RW-Rent and Taxifeer offer full-service rentals, meaning the company, not the user, arranges the vehicle's insurance.

"It's a full-service rental — the rental company remains the owner and takes care of the insurance. I'm not sure if it could be done differently. Perhaps if the car is sold in a certain way and registered in the user's name, they would handle it, but that would be a different arrangement," Kalmholm said.

According to Kalmholm, companies renting cars to Bolt drivers in Estonia operate on a local scale only — none have grown large enough to expand to other countries as yet.

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