By the Sevetu team
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Short answer
Before hiring a driver, check his licence on Parivahan using the DL number and date of birth1, make sure the class covers your car, look up pending challans by DL number on the e-Challan portal2, verify his identity with consent, apply for police verification, and take a paid test drive on your real route. The first three take ten minutes and are free.
1. Look up the licence
Ask for the licence number and date of birth, then use Parivahan's licence details service. It looks a licence up by "Drivers License Number & DOB"1. A licence shown in DigiLocker or mParivahan is legally the same as the card3. Check that the name, photo and validity match the person in front of you.
2. Check the class
A family car needs a licence that covers light motor vehicles. A two-wheeler licence doesn't. Which licence a driver needs →
3. Check pending challans
The e-Challan portal lets you search by vehicle number, challan number or DL number2. A couple of old parking fines is normal. Repeated speeding or signal jumping is a conversation to have before he drives your children.
4. Check identity, with consent
An Aadhaar check confirms the ID is real. It doesn't tell you about the person's past. Check an Aadhaar number, free →
5. Apply for police verification
Especially for anyone driving your children or parents. The official route, city by city →
6. A paid test drive, your car, your route
Not a lap round the block. Drive the real school run or office route at the real time of day, and sit in the back. Watch for:
- Mirrors and indicators, every time.
- Phone: not in his hand.
- Speed bumps and potholes: slowing down without being told.
- Reversing and parking in your building.
- Calm when someone cuts in.
Questions to ask
- Which cars have you driven, and for how long?
- Tell me about your last family. Can I call them?
- What do you do if a child in the back won't wear the seat belt?
- What would you do if the car breaks down on the highway at night?
- Are you comfortable with late nights or outstation trips? How often?
Then write it down
Salary, hours, weekly off, late-night rule, outstation allowance and notice. Hiring directly, without a broker → · What to pay a driver → · The agreement →
Hire an ID-verified driver on Sevetu →
Read next: background check for a maid
Questions people ask
Use Parivahan's licence details service with the DL number and date of birth, and check the name, photo, class and validity.
Yes. The e-Challan portal at echallan.parivahan.gov.in searches by DL number, vehicle number or challan number.
No. It confirms the ID is genuine, not the person's record. Add a licence check, police verification and a reference call.
Which cars he has driven, a reference you can call, how he handles children and breakdowns, and whether late nights and outstation trips suit him.
Sources
- Parivahan, FAQ: Services on driving licence and Know your License Details, read 11 October 2026: look up by "Drivers License Number & DOB"; if not found in DigiLocker, consult the RTO. parivahan.gov.in
- ClearTax, E-Challan, read 12 November 2026: check on the eChallan Parivahan website by "vehicle registration number, driving license number, or challan number". cleartax.in
- Press Information Bureau, MoRTH advisory, 9 August 2018: records on DigiLocker or mParivahan "are deemed to be legally recognised at par with the original documents". pib.gov.in
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Written by the Sevetu teamSevetu is a hiring marketplace for household work in India, operated by Fiel Private Limited. These guides come from the questions families and workers ask us. Nothing here is sponsored, and where a number has no defensible source we say so instead of inventing one. About Sevetu
