How as-directed (hourly) chauffeur hire actually works

Point-to-point transfers are simple to picture: one address to another, at an agreed time. As-directed hire is a different shape of booking, and one that's easy to describe once you've used it, but harder to picture from the name alone.

What you're actually booking

Rather than a single journey, you're booking a chauffeur and car for a block of time — a set number of hours, or a full day — and they stay with you throughout. There's no need to specify every stop in advance; the itinerary can move as the day does, with a phone call rather than a new booking.

Where it fits

It suits days built around more than one destination: a series of client meetings across London, a wedding moving between a ceremony and a reception venue, a roadshow visiting several sites, or simply a day where the plan is deliberately left open. Anywhere a single fixed route doesn't describe the day well, hourly hire usually does.

How it's priced

Pricing is agreed by the hour or by the day before you travel, based on the time you expect to need rather than the distance you expect to cover. That means the cost stays fixed even if the itinerary changes shape during the day — an extra stop or a later finish doesn't trigger a new fare.

The distinction that matters most is control: as-directed hire hands the shape of the day to you, rather than fixing it in advance the way a single transfer does.