June 24--A pilot car-sharing program between Ford and Getaround, a San Francisco-based car-sharing startup, could help owners make $500 or more per month, helping offset the cost of car ownership.
"It's a win-win," said David McClelland, vice president of marketing for Ford Motor Credit. "It's income for the owner (and) mobility solution for the renter."
The pilot is being offered to 14,000 customers who have a loan through Ford Motor Credit Company in Chicago, which has the country's largest concentration of Ford Credit customers, and five other markets where Getaround operates, including Oakland, Berkeley and San Francisco in California as well as Portland, Ore., and Washington, D.C.
"In Chicago, significant numbers of vehicles are parked and out of use most of the time," McClelland said. "This pilot helps us gauge our customers' interest in car sharing."
Here's how the program works:
Owners register with Getaround, setting the days and times their car is available. Owners also determine the rental price (a Getaround community manager is available to consult) for their car, which Getaround equips with a telematic device that enables pre-screened renters to unlock and start the car with the Getaround app.
Owners can monitor usage remotely through Web and mobile applications.
Installation has an initial cost of $99, with a monthly data fee of $20. Getaround says car owners earn on average $521 a month.
"Some people with really nice cars like a Ford Mustang or Tesla are earning up to $3,000 (per month)," said Padden Murphy, head of business development for Getaround.
Insurance is covered by Getaround for up to $1 million and includes liability, collision, property damage and uninsured motorist protection. As soon as the renter unlocks the car, Getaround's insurance replaces the owner's and renter's personal auto insurance.
About 20 percent of the rental fee covers insurance. Another 20 percent goes to Getaround. The owner gets the rest. Round-the-clock roadside assistance is included.
If a renter returns a car without filling up the tank to the initial level, Getaround reimburses the owner and charges the renter's credit card.
Renters must register with a driver's license and credit card and undergo a driver history and identity check, as well as a social verification via Facebook to "ensure the person is who they say they are," Murphy said.
Renters have a cap of 200 miles per day and are charged per mile when they go over. Most of the 200,000 people signed up for Getaround across the six markets live within 0.2 miles of the car they are renting.
"Our focus is on folks who are using cars in their community," Murphy said.
It's a departure from another car-sharing startup called Flightcar, which operates at airports and lets owners rent out their cars while out of town.
"Every car-share vehicle has the potential to take 9 to 13 other cars off the road," Murphy said of the impetus for Getaround. "So why don't we turn some of the 250 million personal cars into shared cars?"
That might seem at odds with an automaker's mission to sell cars to as many people as possible. Yet both McClelland and Murphy see the partnership as benefiting both companies and society.
"Car sharing has a proven track record of providing a social good," Murphy said, citing the carbon dioxide emissions and congestion that would be reduced if more people shared and fewer owned.
For Ford, the six-month pilot program, with a registration deadline of July 31, is a learning experience.
"Ford Credit wants to understand which customers use it, rent it and what we can learn from that to provide services at the end of the pilot period," McClelland said.
rduffer@tribpub.com
