5 Ways To Make Money Renting Out Your Car

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make money renting out your car

If you’ve got a spare car sitting around idle, wouldn’t it be nice to put it to work earning passive income? There are a handful of services where you can make money by renting out your car.

Just as you can rent a room or your home through Airbnb, you can do the same with your car.

According to AAA, the annual average cost to own a car is now $10,728. Letting your vehicle be used for car rentals can help you offset the expense.

There are several options for renting out your car. Getting started is not difficult and you can have your car listed in less than an hour in most cases.

Here’s how to earn passive income by renting out your car.

How To Rent Out Your Car

Each car-sharing service below is an online marketplace for renting out your car.

Choose one based on your personal preferences, program availability in your area, and the payout amount. Then, you can make cash by renting out your car.

1. Hyrecar

HyreCar specifically caters to rideshare and delivery drivers. This means that Uber and Lyft drivers would rent and use your vehicle to drive around passengers.

According to HyreCar’s website, the average car owner makes $14,000 per year renting out their vehicle through HyreCar. This can be a nice chunk of change to earn for letting other people use your car when you’re not driving it.

Setting up a listing on this car-sharing site is free and easy. You’ll need to describe your car and then upload some photos, vehicle registration, and inspection documents. When someone requests to rent your vehicle via car sharing, you’ll get a notification.

Try to confirm a request quickly because it will expire after 24 hours. After approving the request, make sure you verify the accuracy of all documents for your car. Insurance is generated 24 hours before pickup unless requested otherwise.

2. Turo

When renting out your personal vehicle, Turo is one of the best-known options that lets car owners rent their cars for money— so much so that it’s touted as the Airbnb for cars. Turo is available in many U.S. cities and select Canadian provinces.

Listing your car is free, and the process is pretty simple on this car-sharing site. Just describe your car and upload some clean photos, and you’re ready to get started.

You can use the calendar option to select when your car is available to rent and block out days and times that don’t work for you.

When someone requests or books your car, you’ll get a notification. You get to coordinate when and where to meet your guests.

To list your car on Turo, it must have fewer than 130,000 miles, a clean title, a fair market value of no more than $150,000, and have never been declared a total loss.

Learn more: Turo Review: Is This Car Rental Option Legit?

3. Getaround

According to Getaround’s website, car owners make thousands of dollars per year in passive income through this car-sharing platform.

You can earn more than $800 a month renting your car through Getaround. It’s a great way to make extra cash renting out your car.

This means you could make more than $9,600 per year in extra income. That’s enough to cover your car payments and then some.

As a Getaround host, you get a $50 monthly driving credit to rent a car through the site yourself.

Your car carries a $1 million primary insurance policy when renting it out with Getaround. Coverage includes liability, collision, property damage, uninsured motorist protection, and theft.

Your rental earnings accrue monthly, and you get paid by the 15th of the following month. You’ll get 60% of your earnings from renting out your car.

Getaround keeps a 40% commission to cover insurance, roadside assistance and a 24/7 help desk.  

4. TravelCar

Wouldn’t it be great if you could park your car at the airport while you’re traveling and make money on it? TravelCar has figured out a way to tap into the potential cars parked in airport lots while their owners are out of town.  

The Paris-based car-sharing service rents out your vehicle to other travelers while you’re away. In exchange, you’ll get free parking and earn money for every mile driven on your car, up to $100.

Your car will also receive a free car wash upon its return. It’s an awesome option to make cash renting out your car.

When renting your car out through this car-sharing platform, you’ll get $1 million in liability insurance and coverage against theft and physical damage. Even if your car doesn’t get rented, you still get free parking for up to seven days.

Customers who rent a car through TravelCar pay up to 70% less than the cost of renting from a traditional car rental agency, so there’s a good incentive for them to rent your car.

5. Avail

Avail is one of the best car-sharing companies that will help you rent out your car when you’re traveling. When you park your car in the Avail car-sharing parking lot, other travelers can rent your car out.

You’ll earn $20 per day in extra income for mid-sized cars, standard-sized cars, and vans. Large SUV owners will earn $25 per day.

Renters will refuel your car before it’s dropped off. Also, your car is covered for up to $1 million in Allstate auto insurance and is covered for roadside assistance.

Travelers who borrow your car have a limit of 150 miles per day they can drive. They have to pay extra for any mileage over that amount.

Your car has to be under ten years old, have less than 125,000 miles on it, and be in good working condition to be eligible to use Avail. As long as you meet these requirements, you can make money renting out your car.

How Much Can You Make Renting Your Car?

How much you make renting out your car largely depends on where you live and the demand for your specific type of vehicle. For example, you’ll get paid differently for renting out an SUV than you would for a compact car.

The service you use to rent out your car will also affect your earnings. For instance, you’ll earn between 65% and 85% of the trip price with Turo.

So, if you list your vehicle online for $50 per day, you’ll get between $32.50 and $42.50.

Turo offers an online calculator called the carculator to help you estimate how much you can make renting out your specific make and model of car.

As mentioned, HyreCar estimates that the average car owner makes $14,000 per year.

What About the Risks?

Renting out your car to strangers may understandably make you nervous. It’s bad enough when your friend or child wants to borrow your wheels.

Rental car companies understand people’s hesitancy to hand over their keys. That’s why they offer large insurance policies for their rental cars and why it tends to cost more money if you opt for them when you travel.

Renters are responsible for covering the price of the policy, often in excess of $500,000, before getting behind the wheel. If the car gets damaged, the renter pays a deductible, and the rental car company works to get your car fixed.

In most cases, the rental company will ensure that you and your car are protected.

For example, Turo offers three vehicle protection plans for hosts: “Premium,” “Standard” and “Basic.” All three plans provide up to $1 million in liability protection but differ in how things like exterior wear and tear are covered.

Insurance Required

The level of protection you select for your vehicle affects what percentages you’ll receive as a payout for renting out your car.

If you decline Turo’s protection plan, you must provide commercial insurance coverage verified by Turo before listing your vehicle on their site.

Are you concerned about renters who smoke in your car or leave it dirty? Fear not. The rental service charges a fee to have your car cleaned and detailed. This means you won’t have to shell out more money.

Things to Consider Before Renting Out Your Car

Now that you have some basic information about renting out your vehicle let’s look at factors you should consider when renting out your car.

Each car rental service is different, including different customer bases and rules. Some also charge more money than others when it comes to fees.

Read all of the fine print before you list your car with any of these online marketplaces so there are no surprises. Also, make sure you’re comfortable with your car insurance coverage with the company.

It’s good to get familiar with the coverage you receive when renting out your car online. Look at what qualifies as a covered peril during the reservation period and the requirements to have the renter be responsible for the damage.

In many cases, you’ll need to provide clear photo documentation within 24 hours of the end of the trip. You’ll want to be able to demonstrate that the damage occurred during the trip.

Make sure you have up-to-date photos of your car’s exterior and interior on file before renting out your vehicle.

Documentation can help showcase neglect or damage from the renter if you get your car back in less than stellar condition. Taking before and after photos is the fastest way to get your case resolved and your car repaired.

Summary

The idea of renting out your car online is similar to renting out your home. There are several ways to make money with your car.

If your vehicle is not getting much use, letting a third-party service such as Turo rent it out can mean extra money in your pocket.

If you’re not comfortable renting out your car regularly, you could get paid to drive your car. This route is less hands-off but still a great way to make money renting out your car.

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10 Comments

  1. My brother and I rented a car from Turo once and one of the tires went flat. It was obvious from the wear on the tire (no tread left) that it was at the end of life for the tire. We were charged to replace the tire. Is this normal, that car repairs get charged to renters?

  2. Matthew King says:

    What if my car breaks down in another city?

  3. Customers will be ask for reimbursement but if they don’t want to pay Turo will pay.

  4. Genny Szegi says:

    My car is located on St Thomas USVI! Do you know of any online platforms operating from VI?

    1. Many services aren’t available out there quite yet, but are constantly looking to expand to become more available! I would check the sites and see if they have a FAQ Section or contact information where you could find out if there is something that could work for you!

  5. In New York City, for instance, there are many different types of tickets.
    1-25 mph speed limit fines that are checked by camera — so, They keep a record of how many times the car is being charged and it would look bad on the person who owns the car. The DMV may not be so aware that you were not the one who is driving the car.
    How do you make sure that the person who is driving and who rented it is the one paying the ticket?
    2-What about if the person drives the car through a toll and you are stuck with the bill?
    How do they handle tolls in the system?
    3-With regards to parking tickets that get lost or fly off of a car and you don’t find out about them until many months later, how do you charge back to the person who rented the car the time?
    4-What would happen if the renter leaves the car in the towaway zone and the car gets towed? How is that handled?
    5-What if the person wants to borrow a child car seat? Is there a way to add that to the cost?

  6. warren michael morgan says:

    What about customers getting tickets?

    1. Tickets will go on their drivers license record so they do not effect the car.

  7. I want to start a car renting business.

    1. Check out the links in this post to help you get started. I hope you have success!