By James MacDonald
Car Culture
20 January 2011 09:42
Many true petrolheads find it hard to stop at single-car ownership, with the joy of owning a weekend toy something we all aspire to. Problem is, that second car can end up being a rather expensive garage ornament.
A new scheme has launched in the US which could put an end to niche cars gathering dust in the garage â€" and earn you a spot of spare cash to boot.
How the Get Around scheme works
You might be familiar with companies like Street Car that offer a ‘pay as you drive’ car share scheme. As a member, you’re able to instantly find your nearest available car, send off a request via your mobile, then get access to the car.
Thing is, that’s akin to a regular rental company with lots of localised outlets. It’s a wonder that it’s taken someone so long to come up with the new ‘Get Around’ (http://www.getaround.com/) concept which turns the public into the hire company.
Essentially, Get Around allows you to register the details of your ‘spare’ car and the amount you’d like to rent it out for on an hourly/daily/weekly basis, then for a percentage of the rental fee they provide you with comprehensive insurance and add your car to their database.
Play at being Hertz from your iPhone
Interested parties search the database via a nifty little iPhone app which lists all renters local to them, then allows them to choose the car they want. Access is given to your car through their phone connecting to a small box of tricks supplied when you register â€" so you don’t even have to meet the people using your car to hand over the keys!
The app works both ways, letting the car owner check where their car is at any given time, and also provide a running total of the amount of money they’ve made so far.
Currently the scheme is being trialled in San Francisco, but world domination plans are afoot if it proves successful. No word yet on if you have to leave a selection of fruity boiled sweets in the glovebox, though.
Source: http://www.getaround.com/
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