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Whether Zip or Flex, Car Sharing Is On the Rise

By Joseph S. Enoch
ConsumerAffairs.com

December 18, 2006

Car Sharing • Zipcar and Flexcar to Merge • Whether Zip or Flex, Car Sharing Is On the Rise --- • Flexcar • Zipcar

Owning a car in a city can be an aggravating, annoying and troublesome headache. After all, there's almost no parking and insurance is usually at least double. Fender benders, even when the car is parked, happen weekly and at some point, the car will be vandalized, stolen or otherwise rendered completely unusable or charred.

But luckily, with the advent of shared car companies, urbanites no longer have to worry about all that car craziness.

Zipcar and its rival, Flexcar, are companies that work on the premise of shared cars. Essentially, there are cars parked throughout various cities that members can rent up to a few minutes before they need one. The rental includes the car, fuel, insurance and the peace of mind that there is a parking spot waiting for the user when he or she returns the car.

The rental for both companies is an hourly rate of $9 or $65 daily before taxes. Although it seems like a lot of money, in reality the majority of city dwellers will save money using these companies, assuming they use public transportation for the bulk of their daily in-town errands.

I had a car when I first moved to D.C. and the best decision I've made this year, other than taking a job with ConsumerAffairs.com, was to sell my jalopy.

I am a disc jockey on the weekends and use Zipcar to haul my equipment. I also occasionally use Zipcar to cover stories for ConsumerAffairs.com outside the D.C. area. But other than that, I use public transportation or taxis to get around the city.

Cheaper Than Insurance

In a typical month I rent a Zipcar three times, usually for a whole day each time. During that same month I'll spend about $60 on public transportation. So that means I spend a little more than $270 per month on all my transportation after D.C.'s 10 percent sales tax. That's less than the $400 per month I was quoted for car insurance, not to mention car payments, depreciation, maintenance, fuel, a parking pass, registration and time wasted circling the block looking for a place to park, not to mention the parking tickets that are as unavoidable as pollen and as expensive as a round of allergy shots.

It's very simple to join. All I did was go online, fill out a registration form, pay $25 for a registration fee (which is usually waived), and then pay a $50 per year membership fee.

Within two days I received a confirmation e-mail saying I could either pick up my member card at their downtown office or have them mail it to me. The next day I was off and driving.

Renting the car is a cinch as well. Most members go online to do it, but rentals can also be made by phone. I've used both but prefer to do it online because it's quicker. All I do is go to the website, put in my login info and I'm right into the rental screen.

From there I choose a nearby car. There are about 10 that are less than a block from my apartment and about 30 that are a short walk away. If I want to pick up a car from my office, there are about five within a few blocks.

I have lots of options when it comes to the vehicle I want: economy, hybrid, sporty, van, hatchback, convertible, SUV and pickup truck. There are many modern makes and models. The majority of cars are priced at the base rate of $9 per hour. But a few of the sporty cars, such as the Volvo S40, Mini and BMW 325 cost between $11 per hour and $13.

After I've found the car I want, I put in when I will be picking it up and when I will be returning it. From there it stores my reservation. If I need to change or cancel the reservation, I can do so up to a few minutes before.

Once I'm ready to drive, I walk up to the car, place my magnetized membership card next to a card reader located on the windshield and the car unlocks. Should the car need to be refueled while I'm driving, I pull up to any electronic gas pump and pay using a credit card located in the driver side sun visor. As a courtesy rule, we never leave the next driver with less than a quarter of a tank.

When I'm ready to return the car, I park it where I picked it up, place my card back over the reader and it locks. If I need to get back in the car, I can unlock it at any time until my time is up.

Should I need more time on my rental, I can call in and extend it or use my laptop to do so. However, if the car is already scheduled to be rented by another individual after me, then it's imperative to get the car back because it's $50 per each half hour that the car is late. That happened to me once. I was an hour late and man did it hurt when my I got my credit card statement.

If I'm ever the individual on the other end of that mishap (it hasn't happened to me yet), I can call into Zipcar and have the rental transferred to another nearby vehicle or get a refund.

Catching On

Many urbanites are catching onto the fiscal and stress-related benefits of sharing cars rather than owning them. Flexcar has "tens of thousands" of members and experienced a 100 percent growth last year, said John Williams, Flexcar spokesman.

Zipcar's spokesperson could not be reached for comment. However, a recent survey conducted by Zipcar and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority revealed a decrease in car ownership while 53 percent of those surveyed said that joining Zipcar has delayed their decision to buy a new car

When it comes to choosing which company to join, check their websites. Both have comparable services and prices, but chances are, one has more cars in your neighborhood. I chose Zipcar because there are five cars in the alley behind my apartment and many more within a block or two. Flexcar, which was the first to serve D.C., has eight within about seven blocks.

It's worth nothing that the companies are not in all the same cities. Flexcar is found exclusively in many West Coast cities, while Zipcar is in many East Coast cities and London.

For city dwellers, car sharing is a must-have. The few friends I have who own cars, either need them because they work in one of the rare D.C. areas that are not served by public transportation, or, in most cases, simply out of pride. They say they can't imagine life without a car. Well, I can't imagine wasting money on one.

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