My own business as an errand runner? Advice, Experience...?

i was thinking of opening up my own business as an errand runner, shop for people, take them to doc appts(elderly), but was wondering any drawbacks and legalties of this kind of business?

All kinds of legalities come to mind, as worded. First if you are going to be giving rides in your own car, you need to have a Chauffers License, and applicable insurances. Just think of the lawsuits that could pop out of nowhere should you have an injured client in your vehicle. As errand runner, what happens if a package has to be delivered in x-time, and you get in to an accident and can't get it there because you are layed up by the law, or the hospital, etc. Shopping for people is okay, as long as you know exactly what they want. Let's say they send you to pick up a gallon of milk, and then you find they wanted 2% because they are lactose intollerant. You either pay it out yourself or return it for the right product, but either way costs you another trip to the market. Otherwise, please don't be discouraged by this. If you have a plan in place, and friends who are willing to help in a pinch, you could do well in this type of adventure. Fed-Ex, DHL, and most of the other large carriers started out as delivery services and just got really big. Something else to take into consideration, is what happens if you have an elderly person who dies while a passenger in your car for other than age related reasons? The liability would be fully placed on your shoulders, and that could wipe out everything you are working to attain. Hope this helps