Zipcar Makes Car Rental Easier, Cheaper and Way Cool!!
Written: Nov 10 '05 (Updated Nov 29 '05)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Cooler, easier, less expensive and more convenient way to rent a car.
Cons: None. The new paradigm in car rental unless you need a high-mileage rental.
The Bottom Line: Try Zipcar and you will never use any other car rental again. They are easier, more convenient and less expensive.
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| mithril's Full Review: Zipcar |
A few months ago, I tried my first Zipcar rental. I'm hooked and will NEVER go back to renting a car from regular car rental agencies whenever Zipcar is an option. Read on to find out why.
Forget Everything You Know About Car Rentals
No physical rental agency. No collision damage waiver fees. No paying for fuel. No lines. No waiting. Believe it.
Zipcar is a new business model in car rental. Currently available in New York City, San Francisco, Boston, and some other cities around the U.S., Zipcar is spreading quickly because it is such a great idea: simple, fast, and inexpensive internet-based car sharing on an hourly or daily basis.
Forget everything you know about renting a car. Like Tivo did for television, Zipcar changes everything about the current car rental experience. No physical rental agency. No collision damage waiver fees. No "do you want to prepay for gas?" With Zipcar, your rental price includes gas (yes, gas!), insurance, parking and 125 free miles per day. Oh, and, get this - - NO LINES OR WAITING because your car is reserved online and is actually waiting for you instead of the other way around.
But just like the 'big guys', Zipcar does have 24-hour roadside assistance and toll free operators for peace of mind when traveling at odd hours or out of town. And since you don't have to return the car to a rental agency, you can plan your rentals to end at your convenience. In New York City, many rental car agencies close at 6pm. I was able to return my Scion xB at 9:30pm completely by myself because all I had to do was return it to the 24 hour parking garage where I picked it up.
Zipcars Live Near You and are Cheaper and Easier to Rent
Instead of housing Zipcars at car rental agencies, Zipcars are located throughout the city in parking lots and garages near you. You go online, find a car near you (they all have names like "xB Brainiac" or "Prius Paula") and then reserve it for when you need it(this may be done up to a year in advance.) A few minutes before the time of your reservation go to the car (you can get directions to the car location on the Zipcar website and print everything out), then you use your membership card (sort of like an ATM card) to unlock the car and away you go. When you're done you put the car back where you found it. Current prices are from $8.50/hour and $65/day, all inclusive except for tax. This was a full $120 cheaper on a 2 day rental for me than a similar Avis rental in NYC after insurance fees and gasoline.
Did I Mention The Cars are WAY COOLER?
Zipcar has cool cars. Mini Cooper convertibles, Scion xA and xB, Volvos, Toyota Prius, Honda Element. No more sadness in a Chevy Malibu. Rent one that suits your needs at the time. Going to Ikea? Get the Scion xB. The beach? Try out the Mini convertible. Prices vary by car but seem to peak out at around $99/day, still a bargain for all-inclusive rates in cities like New York.
My Scion xB was new, clean and comfortable. And I've been thinking of buying one so it was a great opportunity to spend several days with one before committing. But that's another review.
Ever Had A Rental With A Gas Card & EasyPASS?
Because your Zipcar knows who you are and because the price includes fuel, each Zipcar has a credit card in it to pay for the gas. I just pulled into a station in Pennsylvania and it worked no problem. Flawless. And the cost of gas was included in my rental fee. I saw gas go to almost $3.00 a gallon overnight and had a 'what, me worry?' attitude because my bill was unchanged.
I also benefited from the Scion's EasyPASS - - Zipcar just adds the tolls to your account. So you save time and money by not waiting in toll lines and you get the lower EasyPASS toll rate. How cool is that?
How Do I Get Started and Rent a Car?
You sign up for Zipcar online at www.zipcar.com. Their interface is very easy and user-friendly. There is an annual fee to be a member of Zipcar that varies if you are signing up for personal or business use (business users pay more annually but have a different rate schedule.) My first rental more than paid for the first year's membership in savings over other rental car agencies.
There is a small fee (I think $25) to cover the application cost of verifying your information and insurance-worthiness. Each member of your household wanting to drive pays this one-time application fee to get their own card - - without a Zipcard you may not drive the car. I think members of the same household having the same address may each have a Zipcar card on the same account without additional annual membership fees but you must pay the one-time application fee for each cardholder.
You will need to enter your driver's license information. There is an automated insurance review you must pass that they warn may take some time but the entire process took me all of 3 minutes.
Once approved you will get an ATM-like card mailed to you snail mail that is your identification card and key for rentals. I didn't want to wait for the card so I went to pick mine up that afternoon at a Zipcar corporate office in midtown.
Once you're carded, go online and reserve a car. The interface here is great with choices of searching by car type within location or just for a particular car. You can have the system find only the cars nearest to where you ar searching from so that the choice of cars may vary to make the car pickup/return more convenient as you need it. Online maps/directions aid you in locating the vehicle. When you go to get the car, wave your Zipcard near the reader on the windshield on the driver's side of the car. The car will open and inside will be your keys and gas card.
These cards and the system are smart. The car will not open unless it is within 30 minutes of your rental period. And the car will not start for anyone else but you, even with the key, because the car knows you by your card and knows that only you may use it during the time you've reserved.
Zipcar recommends leaving some extra time to get and return your car. It seems mysterious the first time but trust me it is very easy.
The Small Print is Common Sense
There are some Zipcar rules and they're important but also common sense. Here are a few:
Report problems with cars to Zipcar immediately so they can deal with them and not pass them on to another customer. Cars are machines. Even though Zipcar has a team of workers maintaining and checking on the cars, if something doesn't work, Zipcar wants to know about it from you. Check out the car before you drive it and then after you're done. The first Scion xB I got into didn't have a working cd player and I was bummed at the thought of being with a car like that for 2 days. I called, reported it, and they connected me with a better, newer Scion xB one block away instead. Excellent.
They have strict late penalty fees on returns because if you haven't extended your rental period your failure to return the car on time could mean someone is waiting for a car that's not there. If you need the car longer, you can call and extend the time you're entitled to use the car and they system will keep it as unavailable until you are done. The late penalty fees just make sure you return your car on time so as not to disappoint the next customer.
Leave the car clean and tidy. Someone else will be using it right after you. To help you do this, if you fax or mail them a receipt for a car wash/vacuum of your car during your rental, they'll reimburse you for the cost of it plus the value of 30 minutes rental time for that car.
The Only Way to Rent A Car
As I've said, now that I've rented from Zipcar, I would never use anyone else if they are an option. Check out their website to see if they are near you. They are spreading and are turning car rentals on their ear. In a good way.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
mithril
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 - Top 1000 |
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Location: Hollywood, FL USA
Reviews written: 33
Trusted by: 2 members
About Me:
I was raised a 20th century American consumer.
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