The popular phrase "A car is not a luxury, but a means of transportation" takes on a completely new meaning in the 21st century. Now there is no need to save money to buy your own car, because you can use various services that allow you to rent a vehicle for a reasonable fee for personal purposes for any period of time. Rentals can be long-term or short-term, each option has its own advantages and disadvantages. In Ukraine, in recent years, began to enjoy particular popularity car rent. Now our compatriots have the opportunity to get acquainted with a new, more progressive service, which is already actively used in Europe and the USA. It's about car sharing. What it is and whether it has any advantages over the classic car rental, we will just try to find out in this article.
What is car sharing?
The history of carsharing began in the early 20th century in the US state of Nebraska, when the owner of a small auto repair shop Joe Sounders rented out his Ford T car.
Car sharing is a short-term car rental. By ordering this service, you pay only for the time that you used the vehicle. Payment is charged per minute, while the car can only be used within a certain region or even an urban area. To use the service, you need to install a special application on your smartphone, create your own account for booking a car, then use the car and pay for car sharing.
To use the service, you need to have the following documents:
- driver's license. Driving experience must be at least 2 years;
- identification;
- bank card number with a certain amount of funds in the account.
After approval of the registration, the person wishing to use the service receives from the car-sharing company a special key card that opens the car.
To use the vehicle, after receiving the smart card, you need to do the following:
- open an application or a car rental website, upload a map of your area and find a parking spot for the selected car sharing company;
- find a car suitable for the parameters;
- book a car. To do this, you can select a special option in the application or call the specified phone number;
- find a car in the parking lot and open it with a smart card.
The cost of car sharing depends on the class of the car and the tariff schedule that applies to the car rental company. Payment is charged per minute and includes fuel and insurance costs. In the event of a traffic violation, the fine comes to the car-sharing company, which redirects it to the violator.
Payment for using the car will be charged automatically from the bank card specified when registering the account. The funds will be debited after the car returns to the parking lot. In this case, in addition, the amount of the deposit will be frozen (or written off) on the card, which will be returned if the car is handed over intact.
Classic car rental
Classic car rental can be short or long term. Rental conditions each company may differ slightly, but usually the service can be used by renters who are at least 21-25 years old, while driving experience must be at least a year. The lease agreement may provide for a certain deposit, which is charged for the period of use of the vehicle.
In a long-term lease, the renter uses the car for a long time, without investing in its maintenance. The rental company is engaged in this. The lease terms are indicated in the contract. The main difference between car rental and car sharing is the terms of car rental. So customers of Narscars car rental can use a car from several hours to several years, and when using a car-sharing car, payment is charged per minute, and its maximum service life does not exceed 24 hours.
Pros and cons
Any car rental, both long-term and short-term, has the following advantages:
- cost savings. Renting a car is cheaper than maintaining your own transport;
- convenience. In most major cities, rental car parks are located in user-friendly locations;
- payment methods. You can pay for the service remotely, funds are debited from your bank card;
- saving time. With a rented car, you can quickly get to the desired point and complete all the planned tasks faster.
As for car sharing, this service has the following advantages:
- there is no need to visit the office and document the use of the car. All decisions are made online;
- You can register and book a car around the clock, while car rentals accept applications around the clock, but draw up documentation only during business hours;
- when it becomes necessary to use transport, you do not need to look for pick-up points or order delivery of a car to your address, it is enough to find the nearest parking lot of carsharing cars through the application, use any of them and leave it at another parking lot;
- if you book a car in advance, you will not need to waste time warming it up, because its engine will be started up in advance in a remote mode.
Despite the large number of advantages, car sharing has certain disadvantages. Firstly, you can use the service only if you have a permanent Internet connection. Secondly, payment is made by automatically debiting funds from the payment card, which means that it must be linked to an account created in the application of the car sharing company, which can be susceptible to various types of cyber attacks. Thirdly, you can use transport only within a certain city or even an area, which significantly limits freedom of movement.
Conclusion
If you need to rent a car for just a few minutes or hours in order to make a short-term trip within your city, car sharing will be the most profitable and fastest option for you. If you want to travel throughout the country and abroad, without feeling any restrictions and without overpaying extra funds, rent a car from the company Narscars.
