# Do not rent your cars out! (Turo)



## MyJessicaLS430 (May 29, 2018)

For those thinking of / are renting their cars out, you may want to think twice.

Yesterday when I was working, I received a call from my sister. Her car was involved in an accident but she was not the driver. Here is what happened. According to the driver who rented her car, the car was rear-ended when attempting to make a right turn. The car behind perhaps was following too close and did not stop in time. There was a large dent on the left rear bumper and the tail-light was broken inside-out.

Since my sister was out-of-town, she called me immediately soon after notified by the renter and told me to take care of the situation. Apparently the driver at fault (who rear-ended my sister's car) was driving his dad's car. His dad wanted to deal with the problem in an 'amicable' manner and I agreed without any other choice (since the insurance company may decline financial responsibility after finding out the car was used in a compensated manner).

This is not the end. I had to negotiate with the renter. I gave him 2 options. One is to end the rental and offer him a refund equivalent to 2-day rental cost. The other is to rent a car of his choice at no additional cost. To my surprise, he did not choose any of them but helped to drive the car back to my home. In return, I drove him back to his hotel and will send him to the airport on Monday afternoon. 

Today I drove the car back to Lexus and asked for an estimate of repair. I then took some pictures of the estimate which costs $2600 and sent to the driver's dad. He is very noble and agreed with the repair. These days you really cannot find a person like that. Since there is a limit of Chase quick pay, he recommended to meet him tomorrow to pay in cash.

Renting out your car is much more risky than doing RS. In RS, you have control of your own car and hence you have no one to blame in the event of an accident. When you rent your car out, you have no idea whether the renter treats your car with respect. Some may even abuse the car due to the logic 'this is not my car anyway' and this is talking about adding 200 miles everyday to the odometer! Furthermore, my sister had a renter previously who did not respond to emails / calls for toll reimbursement. However, all Turo can do was to urge the renter to respond to my sister. Imagine if a renter was at fault in an accident, do you think Turo is going to care? On the bright side, you can set a daily rate and also per-mile rate if the renter drives beyond a certain mileage. Nevertheless, I would never allow a stranger to drive my car.


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## 1.5xorbust (Nov 22, 2017)

You’ve convinced me to never rent my car out. You were very fortunate to be paid as you were. Hopefully you’ll collect tomorrow.


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## observer (Dec 11, 2014)

That's not the worst of it. It may not be over.

The renter could claim a back injury and sue the driver, your sis and your sis' insurance company.


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## crowuber (Feb 16, 2018)

MyJessicaLS430 said:


> For those thinking of / are renting their cars out, you may want to think twice.
> 
> Yesterday when I was working, I received a call from my sister. Her car was involved in an accident but she was not the driver. Here is what happened. According to the driver who rented her car, the car was rear-ended when attempting to make a right turn. The car behind perhaps was following too close and did not stop in time. There was a large dent on the left rear bumper and the tail-light was broken inside-out.
> 
> ...


Some people make a good living by renting several cars with Turo. I imagine there has to be a way to protect their liability with the insurance companies. Otherwise, the renters would be constantly ruining their businesses all over the country.


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## doyousensehumor (Apr 13, 2015)

The problem with gig stuff is people aren't prepared to deal with the problems. Business professionals count on the worst happening. It's not if, but how often. Private people don't. A person just considers a car to be his love and joy. 

A professional already did the math and knows what his expences are, what to price the services, and knows that a certain % of "units" will be damaged or total loss and is prepared for it.


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## Coastal_Cruiser (Oct 1, 2018)

I have to agree with the OP. I looked at Turo vs ridesharing to help make payments on a Tesla. Having the car under your own control is tantamount so ride sharing wins.


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## Kodyhead (May 26, 2015)

Add me to the list of "I don't care it's not my car"

I also use up all the wiper fluid as well just cause it makes me giggle



crowuber said:


> Some people make a good living by renting several cars with Turo. I imagine there has to be a way to protect their liability with the insurance companies. Otherwise, the renters would be constantly ruining their businesses all over the country.


The way it was explained to me it's like uber where their insurance starts when the car is rented


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## chitownXdriver (Dec 24, 2014)

observer said:


> That's not the worst of it. It may not be over.
> 
> The renter could claim a back injury and sue the driver, your sis and your sis' insurance company.


That's not how it works, he can sue the other driver's insurance since the other driver was at fault, if he tried to sue OP's sister or her insurance they would just laugh at him and whatever lawyer agreed to take that case


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## Fuzzyelvis (Dec 7, 2014)

chitownXdriver said:


> That's not how it works, he can sue the other driver's insurance since the other driver was at fault, if he tried to sue OP's sister or her insurance they would just laugh at him and whatever lawyer agreed to take that case


He can sue whoever he wants. The other driver's insurance might need to be maxed out before it goes to the sister's and assuming she has uninsured/underinsured motorist it would then kick in. Once it's maxed out or she doesn't have that then the people and their own money become targets.

My SO was just in the hospital for 4 days. Bill is almost $35,000. How quickly do you think someone's insurance will run out after a few back surgeries?

Of course, if Turo has insurance as part of the agreement (I don't know what they have) then it is hopefully primary, and not state minimum like most folks. (State minimum is a joke btw at least in my state).


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## observer (Dec 11, 2014)

chitownXdriver said:


> That's not how it works, he can sue the other driver's insurance since the other driver was at fault, if he tried to sue OP's sister or her insurance they would just laugh at him and whatever lawyer agreed to take that case


Any lawyer will sue everyone involved.

Her insurance will absolutely laugh at the sis (they'll still have to pay to defend themselves) but guess who is likely to be left holding the bag?

The sis.

That's why when you operate a business and yes if you rent your car out, you are operating a business, you get the proper insurance that will cover your business and yourself.


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## TwoFiddyMile (Mar 13, 2015)

I owned a fleet of 5 taxis for most of a decade. Accidents happen.
But then again my fleet was commercially insured.
I cant even get my business head around renting out an UberX car with simple private liability insurance.
Nope no nada can't do it.


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## Immoralized (Nov 7, 2017)

A lot of people come into the renting games thinking oh I can make all this money!
Then the car gets wrecked, stolen or come back completely trashed and wonder "Wow! OMG! what happened!."

This is no surprise in what happened. With renting a car out you got to do it in volume because a car is going to get into a motor vehicle accident, it is going to get trashed beyond recognition that you think a different car is coming back and occasionally the car might just get stolen in general. If it was easy $$$ everyone be doing it but it actually a lot of work  People don't figure out how much work it is until $h!t start hitting the fan and costing them enormous amount of time and money.

There was a fleet manager in my city of about 30 rental vehicles and everything was going sweet for the first couple of years and then one of his vehicles he had out for rent hit a new Mercedes Benz AMG with all the options and wrote it off. Wrote off both vehicles. Insurance doing investigation and challenging paying him out the Merc owner suing the fleet manager and that how the whole business collapsed because damages been claimed was excessive of $200 000.

That one thing you absolutely can't cheap out on is insurance because if they leave you high and dry on a major claim well you pretty much screwed. After vehicle insurance you most likely need public liability insurance and then private liability insurance as well. All with different insurance companies so if you get screwed over by one at least you aren't holding the bag. Unfortunately got no short cuts and insurance costs usually the reason it sends a lot of rental vehicle business out of business.


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## fraqtl (Aug 27, 2016)

MyJessicaLS430 said:


> For those thinking of / are renting their cars out, you may want to think twice.
> 
> Yesterday when I was working, I received a call from my sister. Her car was involved in an accident but she was not the driver. Here is what happened. According to the driver who rented her car, the car was rear-ended when attempting to make a right turn. The car behind perhaps was following too close and did not stop in time. There was a large dent on the left rear bumper and the tail-light was broken inside-out.
> 
> ...


This is what having the correct insurance in for


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## RightTurnOnRed (Jun 15, 2018)

Both Turo and HyreCar have 3 levels of insurance coverage a renter must choose from when renting thru their platforms. Its part of the contract. The renter can not pick up the rental until the insurance company underwrites a policy. The problem is what happens if the renter decides to disappear with the rental and after the rental contract ends, the renter gets into a collision ? Does the rental platform have a policy that would cover theft or some other form of permanent loss ?


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## Immoralized (Nov 7, 2017)

RightTurnOnRed said:


> Both Turo and HyreCar have 3 levels of insurance coverage a renter must choose from when renting thru their platforms. Its part of the contract. The renter can not pick up the rental until the insurance company underwrites a policy. The problem is what happens if the renter decides to disappear with the rental and after the rental contract ends, the renter gets into a collision ? Does the rental policy have a policy that would cover theft or some other form of permanent loss ?


Only if it has a theft clause in it to extend coverage. Otherwise the owner maybe liable for any damages after the fact.
If someone decides to just keep the car and go on a joy ride after the return date and gets into a major vehicle accident causing disabilities and or fatalities who going to take responsibility? Or really even liabilities.

I haven't read their fine prints in the contract if they cover such situations which are not uncommon or that out of the realm of possibilities. Especially if the vehicle is reported stolen and the cops do a plate check and turns up stolen and they go on a high speed pursuit which usually end up in some kind of crash.


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## songoku (Nov 27, 2016)

MyJessicaLS430 said:


> For those thinking of / are renting their cars out, you may want to think twice.
> 
> Yesterday when I was working, I received a call from my sister. Her car was involved in an accident but she was not the driver. Here is what happened. According to the driver who rented her car, the car was rear-ended when attempting to make a right turn. The car behind perhaps was following too close and did not stop in time. There was a large dent on the left rear bumper and the tail-light was broken inside-out.
> 
> ...


I'm totally convinced. Never gonna rent my cars out...ever.


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## June132017 (Jun 13, 2017)

I might try renting my car out and see how it goes once I figure it's obsolete to me. I would limit their miles to 200 though. Hell no ain't nobody driving 1,000 miles for $27/day.


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## Kodyhead (May 26, 2015)

Fuzzyelvis said:


> He can sue whoever he wants. The other driver's insurance might need to be maxed out before it goes to the sister's and assuming she has uninsured/underinsured motorist it would then kick in. Once it's maxed out or she doesn't have that then the people and their own money become targets.
> 
> My SO was just in the hospital for 4 days. Bill is almost $35,000. How quickly do you think someone's insurance will run out after a few back surgeries?
> 
> Of course, if Turo has insurance as part of the agreement (I don't know what they have) then it is hopefully primary, and not state minimum like most folks. (State minimum is a joke btw at least in my state).


Suing and collecting money is 2 different conversations



June132017 said:


> I might try renting my car out and see how it goes once I figure it's obsolete to me. I would limit their miles to 200 though. Hell no ain't nobody driving 1,000 miles for $27/day.


If you have a car that you dont care about its great......... for now


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## MyJessicaLS430 (May 29, 2018)

Fuzzyelvis said:


> He can sue whoever he wants. The other driver's insurance might need to be maxed out before it goes to the sister's and assuming she has uninsured/underinsured motorist it would then kick in. Once it's maxed out or she doesn't have that then the people and their own money become targets.
> 
> Of course, if Turo has insurance as part of the agreement (I don't know what they have) then it is hopefully primary, and not state minimum like most folks. (State minimum is a joke btw at least in my state).


Very true. This is why I do not want to get my sister's insurance involved. We both have under-estimated the likelihood for a renter to be involved in an accident. I should have asked my sister to give me a copy of her rental policy.

This is how Turo insurance works. Consider Turo as a 'technology company' like Uber, it does not provide any insurance service. Liberty Mutual is the insurance provider for Turo hosts. In general, a host have 3 packages to choose from namely, basic, standard and premium As a result, a host keeps 85%, 70% or 60% (I cannot recall the exact number) of the total rental fees paid by a renter respectively.

Regardless of which package you choose, the insured will be entitled to a combined limit of $1M liability insurance. However, depending on the package, the company will pay different percentages of the repair, $ 30 / day car rental and compensate a fraction of lost wages.

What makes it even worse is that uninsured motorist coverage is not mandatory in TX. In the event of a hit-and-run, Liberty Mutual has no responsibility at all.



June132017 said:


> I might try renting my car out and see how it goes once I figure it's obsolete to me. I would limit their miles to 200 though. Hell no ain't nobody driving 1,000 miles for $27/day.


There is a limit on the age of a vehicle. I believe the oldest car cannot be over 10 years old in order to be eligible. Turo has a KBB-like function which gives you a reference of what your vehicle is worth. Of course you can list a price that is above the 'market value' but whether renters will choose your car over others with lower listing prices is another issue. Besides, how much do you expect to earn using a 2009 Corolla, for example? $ 30 may be? Don't forget you have to factor in the insurance premium to be deducted from what a renter pays. Honestly, I have once rented a 2018 Camry with Budget only for $ 40 / day at DCA (Ronald Regan Airport in DC) and have it returned at JFK at no additional cost. As a renter, I am more inclined to prefer the 2018 Camry to a 2009 Corolla. In addition, the renter is likely to abuse your car. 200 miles a day for just $30 before insurance expenses? That is even worse than doing Uber!!


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## observer (Dec 11, 2014)

MyJessicaLS430 said:


> Very true. This is why I do not want to get my sister's insurance involved. We both have under-estimated the likelihood for a renter to be involved in an accident. I should have asked my sister to give me a copy of her rental policy.
> 
> This is how Turo insurance works. Consider Turo as a 'technology company' like Uber, it does not provide any insurance service. Liberty Mutual is the insurance provider for Turo hosts. In general, a host have 3 packages to choose from namely, basic, standard and premium As a result, a host keeps 85%, 70% or 60% (I cannot recall the exact number) of the total rental fees paid by a renter respectively.
> 
> ...


I just happened to be reading up on Turo recently to gauge wether it was worth doing on a commercial scale with 40-50 cars.

I've found lots and lots of complaints about Turos insurance coverage.

Seems to me, the insurance company is more focused on protecting Turo than it is on protecting the vehicle owners.


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## songoku (Nov 27, 2016)

MyJessicaLS430 said:


> Very true. This is why I do not want to get my sister's insurance involved. We both have under-estimated the likelihood for a renter to be involved in an accident. I should have asked my sister to give me a copy of her rental policy.
> 
> This is how Turo insurance works. Consider Turo as a 'technology company' like Uber, it does not provide any insurance service. Liberty Mutual is the insurance provider for Turo hosts. In general, a host have 3 packages to choose from namely, basic, standard and premium As a result, a host keeps 85%, 70% or 60% (I cannot recall the exact number) of the total rental fees paid by a renter respectively.
> 
> ...


I rent pick up truck from Turo sometimes, always chose the premium cover with zero deductible. As a result, I paid more just to feel more comfortable in case accidents occur.

I think you get it wrong here, insurance part is paid by renter.


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## observer (Dec 11, 2014)

songoku said:


> I rent pick up truck from Turo sometimes, always chose the premium cover with zero deductible. As a result, I paid more just to feel more comfortable in case accidents occur.
> 
> I think you get it wrong here, insurance part is paid by renter.


It looks like they charge both the owner and the renter.


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## TwoFiddyMile (Mar 13, 2015)

observer said:


> It looks like they charge both the owner and the renter.


That's called making bank with someone elses property.
Smart!


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## UberPotomac (Oct 8, 2016)

crowuber said:


> Some people make a good living by renting several cars with Turo. I imagine there has to be a way to protect their liability with the insurance companies. Otherwise, the renters would be constantly ruining their businesses all over the country.


"Some people" is a extremely vague statement .
You can not find personal coverage that allow you to rent your car . Business insurance require a business license and the cost fíes not allow you to get competitive rates after paying commissions to TURO.
Check YouTube for the horror stories.



Coastal_Cruiser said:


> I have to agree with the OP. I looked at Turo vs ridesharing to help make payments on a Tesla. Having the car under your own control is tantamount so ride sharing wins.


Rideshare to buy a Tesla? Are you out of your mind?



observer said:


> I just happened to be reading up on Turo recently to gauge wether it was worth doing on a commercial scale with 40-50 cars.
> 
> I've found lots and lots of complaints about Turos insurance coverage.
> 
> Seems to me, the insurance company is more focused on protecting Turo than it is on protecting the vehicle owners.


Turo is the customer for THEIR INSURANCE COMPANY , not the drivers.


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## njn (Jan 23, 2016)

here's a good read. apparently turo's insurance paid out $16,000 less than market value.

https://jalopnik.com/here-s-what-happens-when-someone-on-turo-crashes-your-a-1792048817


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## Christinebitg (Jun 29, 2018)

I read this whole thread. Almost everything is people wringing their hands and saying, "Well something could have happened."

In what part of the Original Post did something terrible actually happen?

I mean, come on. The person at fault had someone offer CASH to pay for the estimated damages. And you whiny people are complaining??

Just take the money and move on. Thank the guy's dad for being a responsible person and move on.


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## OldBay (Apr 1, 2019)

Regarding the jalopnik R8 article...A crash is probably the best possible exit from something like renting out an exotic on Turo.

They probably make 1K a week renting it out. Its dinged, the interior is dirty and worn, the drivetrain has been abused by people who don't know how to drive. Fender benders have been knocked out or filled and painted. And it has gained a ton of miles. Hard to sell at that point.

The car is most definitely not worth what they paid; who would buy a rental exotic? Only someone with intent to track it.

They made a risky business venture and (possibly) lost some money.


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## Dammit Mazzacane (Dec 31, 2015)

One thing that sucks about Turo is that they do have a mileage limit for what cars can go on the platform, so you can't pick up an ex-rideshare car that's already heavily depreciated and send it to the grave using Turo. What about HyreCar ?

IMMA COP https://turo.com/us/en-us/car-rental/burien-wa/ford/crown-victoria/612314?searchId=g-S31IAR


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## MyJessicaLS430 (May 29, 2018)

Coastal_Cruiser said:


> I have to agree with the OP. I looked at Turo vs ridesharing to help make payments on a Tesla. Having the car under your own control is tantamount so ride sharing wins.


You want to use a Model X for X? Don't forget to save up $ for the battery replacement....


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