Have you ever been out walking your dog and looking at all the different cars and thought to yourself ” I would love to drive a car like that” well thanks to the brainchild of two London entrepreneurs it could well become a reality as what is claimed to be the first neighbour-to-neighbour car rental service in the world has arrived. The main aim of the new scheme is to allow those who don’t own a car, but who need one for occasional trips, to be able to hire vehicles from those that do. Owning a car is, after buying a home, one of the biggest expenses most of us face, and so more and more people are giving up their cars as they struggle to cope with the ever increasing living costs.
There has been a steady increase in car club members since the credit crunch hit Britain and for people who drive relatively infrequently, the savings can be substantial. You’ll also be doing your bit for the environment as the average car owner produces more than two tonnes of carbon dioxide while driving, each year, so while car clubs are becoming more popular, this new initiative provides another way to get access to a car when and if you need it.
Founder, and former venture capitalist, Vinay Gupta said “Our vision is that, in time, someone will be able to step out of their front door and have four or five neighbours’ cars within striking distance for hire, The number of relatively unused cars on the road has become a real problem for many neighbourhoods,” “Research has shown that many cars in the UK today are used on average less than an hour per day. Our research also showed that there are many potential renters who would be happy to pay for services if they could be delivered locally. We recognised this as a massive opportunity to bring a peer-to-peer business model to a new market to help address this problem without putting new cars onto the road. For the first time, anywhere in the world, would-be drivers can get rental access to the car next door, literally.”
All of the cars that will be on offer will have a background check to confirm the car is legally registered and the owner’s details are true. Safety checks will also be done. On wishing to become a member, basic security checks will be carried out and anybody with 6 points on their licence will automatically be banned as will anybody who has had a drink driving conviction within the last 5 years
As for pick-up and dropping-off the vehicle, that will be up to the borrower and lender as will filling in a company issued log recording the condition of the car and the amount of fuel in its tank. Only once a fee has been paid, at the company offices in London, will the rental be approved and the car insurance, which will be presumably some sort of any driver car insurance, and completely separate from the car owner’s own policy, will then be activated.
The car owners will be able to set their own prices but they will receive help from the organisers. Both hirers and the hirer will be encouraged to give feedback to the company (similar to EBay) after each rental, so that proceedings can be monitored. Car owners will be paid on a monthly basis, Neither party will have to pay a membership fee; and declaring any money earned to the tax office will be the responsibility of the car-owner and have nothing to do with the company
“We believe our idea will transform the concept of car ownership – and how cars are used and rented in the UK,” said Mr Gupta