Five Important Tips to Be a Successful RelayRides Owner

RelayRides.com is an online car rental service which allows everyday people to rent their vehicles to people seeking to rent a car. Like renting from any car rental company, there are pros and cons to renting. However, there are some unique benefits and risks as well. My experience as an owner of a Relay Rides rental began in December 2014.

In the six months I’ve been renting my car, it pays for itself, and that’s been very helpful while money is tight (if you are thinking of renting from Relay Rides, here is a $25 credit!). I make sure that the account, description, and records stay current, and my husband handles the rental process and communications with our renters. Relay Rides keeps 25% of all income generated by the vehicle, including delivery fees and daily rental rates. Knock on wood, so far things have been excellent, other than one major setback (more on this later).

If you are not sure whether or not renting your vehicle is the right thing to do, I hope that my experience and the links below will help your decision. These five tips summarize everything you should do before you rent your car out, as well as what you should do if you begin renting your car:

1. Understand your risk before creating an account
2. Write a good (and accurate!) description for your vehicle
3. Read and follow the rules of the RelayRides service
4. Provide good customer service and communications (and pay attention to how you are treated!)
5. Keep your vehicle clean and well-maintained

1. Understand Your Risk Before Creating an Account

I can’t remember where I heard about RelayRides, but I started researching them in October-November before listing my vehicle. Before signing up, I made sure I understood all of the potential risk, i.e. worst case scenarios, that could be in my future as a car rental entrepreneur. I also decided to pay my car off first, so that the title and risk was in my hands.

Here are some places to get started in understanding your risk:

• Visit the owner support section of the Relay Rides website. From there, you can learn more about your responsibilities, the insurance coverage (and the role of your insurance), and steps to take during exceptional situations.
• Visit the renter support section of RelayRides.com as well. Ask yourself if you are okay with the process Relay Rides uses when vetting a renter.
• Better Business Bureau and PissedConsumer.com provide some of the contentious things you may encounter when using RelayRides. Compare their rating and responses with that of other rental companies.
• Understand the RelayRides privacy policy. When you create an account, they will store some of your data even if you decide not to use their service. Are you okay with giving up your driver’s license info?

Even if you follow all the rules, the worst case scenario could happen. When I read that story, it really made me think about whether this was even worth the risk. What if the car was involved in a crime? What if it never comes back? What if the driver gets into an accident? Although I did choose to continue, that does not mean that you should. Choosing to rent your car online is a big decision, not to be taken lightly.

2. Write a Good (and Accurate) Description for Your Vehicle

Before writing your vehicle’s description, you have to list your car. The requirements to list your car changed on May 15, 2015. For example, vehicles now must be 2005 or newer and have less than 100,000 miles.

Before I began, I read the how to guides about optimizing my listing. RelayRides wants you to be successful as an owner, because without owners, they earn no commission! They have a great list of tips to help you maximize earnings, and though I haven’t used it (yet), they have paid advertising matching program, where they will reimburse you for up to $50 in advertising costs. I will be using their free photography service to get the “verified photo” badge, but the car has been booked a lot this spring!

It’s also okay to perform a bit of espionage when writing your ad. I looked at the descriptions of comparable cars in my area that 1) had a lot of favorites, 2) had a lot of booked trips, and 3) had a five-star rating. Many of them were warm, descriptive, easy to read, and thorough. I tried hard to write a description for my car that was fun and energetic while reflecting my car’s condition accurately. Jesse’s 2010 Yaris and Jeruss’s 2007 Prius were two ads from other RelayRides owners that were inspirations for my writeup. I review and update the description of the car every few months or so.

Here are some other tips to making your car’s description stand out:

• Add plenty of photographs at different angles
• Highlight the special features that are in season (heated seats in the winter; dual zone a/c in the summer)
• Add important extras (serviced at the dealership; fuel efficient)
• List any special restrictions you have (no pets; special fuel type; etc)
• Personalize the description by adding in your favorite aspects of the car or why it suits the area

Don’t be afraid to change it around as you see fit. I’ve added extra details as things come up, as you will see in tip #3.

3. Read and Follow the Rules of the RelayRides Service

In my opinion, there are some things that owners should always do (some are rules, some are recommendations):

• Always perform a walkaround using the RelayRides checklist. We make two copies so that everyone has a copy.
• Always check the driver’s license of the person driving. Always make a copy.
• Always show the renter where the insurance card is located in the car.
• Always require that renters use the tools on the website to extend a vehicle’s rental time.
• Never allow cash payments for your rental. I had one exception – a parking ticket. It was a small ticket, and I preferred to pay for it myself, to ensure it was paid. The administrative fee would have nearly tripled the price of the infraction. I was very grateful that the renter brought it to my attention, so I did make the exception. In reading the rules about traffic tickets on RelayRides, I felt that it would not jeopardize the insurance coverage.
• Know what to do in the event of an emergency situation (accidents; break downs; refueling; late arrivals; no shows).
• Always keep the emergency phone number handy, and understand the business hours and 24/7 assistance. I have called this number to help walk a renter through an extension before, and I have always received great support from Customer Service at Relay Rides.

For most any type of issue, you must contact Relay Rides within 24 hours of the end of the rental, and you must take pictures and email them to Relay Rides and provide as much evidence to them as quickly as possible. I sent them 20+ pictures of the car when it was involved in the accident, as soon as the car was towed to the house.

At a minimum, follow the rules. I cannot stress this enough. There are times when it can be hard to say no. We want to be the nice guy. We want to be flexible. We want people to like us and give us glowing reviews. The reality is that many exceptions that are requested will void the insurance. Do you want to be a nice guy and lose your investment?

The most common request is to pick up the car early or drop it off late. Insurance will not cover the time before your scheduled start time. Is it really worth the risk?

Another common request is to extend the car and pay cash. Insurance will not cover any time that is booked outside of the RelayRides service. Although a 25% commission sounds high, that is what pays for the insurance. Is pocketing that 25% worth losing coverage?

Why am I so adamant about rules? Well, getting back to that major setback… My car was hit by a plow during an ice storm during its second rental. I was very apprehensive that I’d just made a $16,000 mistake, but it all worked out. The key was communicating the accident to the RelayRides.com according to their rules (call or email within 24 hours of any issue, and provide pictures and details as soon as possible). They were great. I was able to use my dealership to make the necessary repairs, and like my regular insurance, I had a rental car available while the repairs were being made. My car’s value depreciated quicker than normal as a result, and sure, that stinks. Because the car was rented, I had to cancel a booking, but I contacted Relay Rides, and they gave the renter a credit for his inconvenience, which made it a positive experience for him.

There have been times where it was not so clear. I was on the fence with one request – a lady traveling alone, using RelayRides for the first time, wanted us to drop the car off at the airport instead of picking her up and bringing her back to the pickup/delivery location. She offered to pay his taxi (min $22!) home instead of the pickup/delivery from the house. The airport is a little strict with stopped cars, and we may not have been able to perform a walkaround of the car at the beginning and end of the trip. As much as I wanted to help make her feel more comfortable, I did not want to risk stranding my husband at the airport. I felt bad when it resulted in a cancellation, but I’m glad we discussed it early enough for her to find alternate arrangements. In the end, I think we can both rest a little easier.

Tip # 4 stresses customer service; however, it is very important to protect your investment during a business transaction. There are ways to politely say no (or yes)! Generally, if you stick to the rules, both you and your renter will have a better experience. We have never gotten a bad rating for making sure everyone is properly covered!

4. Provide Good Customer Service and Communications

Relay Rides has a good list of owner responsibilities that they consider important for a good experience. Here are some must-do things:

• Respond quickly to renters’ questions.
• Review and pre-approve (or reject) requests quickly.
• Always keep your calendar up-to-date. This will avoid confusion and frustration up front.
• Be up-front with your requirements (no pets; no smoking; etc). Anything important to you should be clear to your renter.
• Relay Rides does not cover your personal items that you leave in the car. To avoid problems, remove items that you’d prefer people not mess with.
• Show up, and be on time.
• Always perform a walkaround of the car
• Communicate, communicate, communicate! Discuss concerns or potential issues up front.

Although the things below may not be necessary, going the extra mile in little ways can go a long way to everyone being happy, and it doesn’t take much effort at all. Although Relay Rides does not cover personal belongings, they are fairly inexpensive to risk:

• We leave an umbrella in the car.
• We leave a USB power outlet in the car.
• We provide copies of the paperwork (the checklist) for the renter to take with them.
• We leave instructions for how to setup the bluetooth in the car.
• We always deliver the car with a full tank of gas.
• When performing a walkaround, we point out features that may be confusing for a renter. For example, our first renter called us, worried about a blue dashboard light when the car starts. It is the cold engine light, which turns off after the car has warmed up. Now we avoid the issue by pointing out the light up when a renter picks up the car.
• We always ask for and provide a review of each trip
• We provide extra information about Relay Rides for first-time renters to make sure they are comfortable

Last but certainly not least, a little politeness goes a long way. One of our five-star reviews was from a renter who wanted to pick up the car early. We were polite in our response and explained that it was to keep everyone insured during their trip. They were 100% okay with following the rules and the trip was very positive. We have found nearly every customer so far to be very pleasant. We have not rejected a person yet, although we did have one cancellation based on our policies (mentioned above).

5. Keep Your Vehicle Clean and Well-maintained

When I was younger, I drove a car with the strangest problems that I couldn’t afford to fix. I had one car where I had to bang on the starter to get the car to start. I didn’t replace lights until I got pulled over by a cop. The check engine light never shut off.

You cannot do any of that on Relay Rides.

Before even getting into rules and policies, I felt I had a moral responsibility to provide a safe car. My Mazda is one of the best in its class for safety, and it has fantastic warranty on safety features. I would not rent it if I were not confident in its safety. For example, the airbag light came on a day before the car was scheduled to go out. I was very stressed, and I was afraid I would have to call Relay Rides to cancel the booking on very short notice. Fortunately, I was able to get the car in the dealership that afternoon, and it was fixed before it was rented. As a bonus, I found out it was covered under warranty. Even if not, I would have paid. I would never forgive myself if something happened to a renter due to my negligence.

Having a clean, well maintained car applies in all four tips above. There are maintenance requirements from Relay Rides to list your car and rules for keeping it maintained. The condition of your vehicle should be reflected accurately in the listing of your car. How you present your car to a renter will have a great impact on their experience.

Maintenance

Relay Rides provides you with all the maintenance requirements that you must follow. To me, the requirements similar to a basic inspection to renew my registration.

I am fortunate to have a fantastic dealership where I purchased my car and where my husband and I take both of our Mazdas for service. The Balise Mazda repair shop is (IMHO), one of the best around, and nobody else has worked on our cars since we’ve owned them.

My personal rule on maintenance for my car is having Mazda perform a safety and performance check each time the oil needs to be changed. It costs $10-25 extra, but I feel it’s well worth it. The car is usually serviced 2-3 times per year.

When the car was involved in the accident, Balise Collision handled everything. Relay Rides seemed happy that we have a great relationship with our dealership, and I feel they respected that. As a result, I can be confident in sharing information about the vehicle and confirming it drives like it’s new.

Cleanliness

Here’s a simple way to think about this: Provide a car that is as clean as what you would expect from a car rental chain. You are the Enterprise Rent-a-Car, the Hertz, the Budget. Have you ever gotten a car that was dirty from any of these places? If you did, what did you think about it?

We have not had major issues with people leaving the car in bad shape, although we have had to clean up food from the floor. There is a cleaning fee that you can impose through Relay Rides if a person has left the car in rough shape. Like all other types of claims, you must contact Relay Rides within 24 hours of the end of the rental, and you must take pictures and email them to Relay Rides.

Here are some basics you should do before renting the car out. In my opinion, there is not a lot of wiggle room with this stuff. Don’t feel bad if you decide that it’s not for you. If my husband didn’t help with this, I very likely would not be as successful renting my vehicle.

• Make sure there are no personal items in the car, left by previous renters or you
• Vacuum the floor mats, carpets, and seats as needed
• Wipe down the dashboard and interior
• Wash the car (we had a protective coating applied to the car that is turning out to be a good investment!)
• Wash the windows
• Check the wiper fluid and the wipers
• Check the tire pressure (including the spare!)
• Check the oil
• Check the coolant

Summary

I hope this information helps you make an informed decision about whether or not you would like to rent your vehicle on Relay Rides. Although I have had a positive experience, I want to reiterate that peer-to-peer car renting is not for everyone. I have read about situations that would make me stop renting my car through the service if it happened to me.

If this article didn’t scare you away, visit Relay Rides now to get started with peer-to-peer rentals! Use the List a Car link in the top-right corner to get started. Happy renting!