What starting in mobile car valeting involves
Mobile car valeting is cleaning and detailing cars at the customer's home or workplace, from a quick wash to a full interior and exterior valet. How often a customer comes back: every two to six months for regular customers, and many are one-off. The aim is to build a list of people you serve again and again.
Customers return a few times a year, so each one is worth several visits, and the diary needs steady new customers as well as regulars.
The order to do things in
- Decide what you'll offer: quick washes, full valets, detailing or all three
- Get public liability insurance and ask specifically about damage to customers' cars
- Work out your price per package using time and rate, and a minimum
- Decide how you'll handle water and waste so you don't create a problem on a driveway
- Build a portfolio of before-and-after photos, even on friends' cars, before you start charging
- Offer regular maintenance washes so each valet becomes a repeat customer
Kit to start with
| Item | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| A pressure washer and a water source | Your own water tank means you aren't relying on the customer |
| A generator or power source | For vacuums and machines when there's no customer power |
| Valeting products and microfibres | Shampoo, wheel cleaner, interior cleaner, polish and towels |
| A polisher and detailing tools | For paint correction and finishing |
| A van | To carry the kit and run the business from |
Running costs to expect: shampoo, wax and polishes, microfibre towels and mitts, interior and wheel cleaners, fuel for the generator and the van, pads and applicators.
Rules to check before you start
- Dirty wash water and detergents must not run into surface-water drains without permission. Check with the Environment Agency and the water company
- COSHH rules apply to the chemicals you use. HSE's guide explains the assessments you should make
Also read insurance for car valeters before you take your first customer.
Finding your first customers
- Local Facebook groups, with a good before-and-after photo of your best work
- Offices and small businesses with staff car parks
- Car dealerships, taxi firms and small fleets who need regular cleaning
- A gift voucher offer at Christmas and Mother's and Father's Day
- Instagram and TikTok videos of the transformation, which also bring local customers
More in how to get your first customers.
How many customers you'll need
Using the example sums in how to price mobile car valeting, about 39 jobs a month earns £2,000 after costs. That's roughly 156 regular customers. Work it out with your own numbers before you promise yourself anything.
Mistakes new car valeters make
- Underpricing a valet that takes much longer than a wash
- Not asking your insurer about damage to customers' cars
- Running wash water into the drain without checking
- Treating every customer as one-off instead of offering a plan
Run your mobile car valeting in WorkWise
Services with their own prices: Each customer's visit has its own services and price, so a full valet and a quick wash are set up once and repeat.