All you need to know about car sharing

When we talk about car sharing, you may think of lift sharing, or sharing your car with your partner or close friend. But more recently, car sharing has come to mean something different, which can help you earn extra money and help the planet.

We’ve partnered with Turo, a trusted car sharing platform to make car sharing simpler and more accessible. And, to help you decide whether car sharing is for you, we’ve answered some of the top-asked car sharing questions.

Think of car sharing as you think of Airbnb. Instead of rooms or houses,  you share your car with other screened drivers, and make some extra cash in the process. With EV car sharing, not only could you be giving access to people who wouldn’t otherwise have a car, you’re also helping to reduce fuel emissions, and getting more people behind the wheel of an EV.

Earning money and helping to better the world - what more could you want?

The thought of sharing your car with a stranger could be a bit daunting, but using Turo can help relieve some of those feelings. Turo screens every driver before they can book your car. Plus, drivers and hosts review each other after the booking, so you can read reviews before you make a decision to accept a booking.

Yes, total control. If someone requests to book your car, you can decide whether to accept or decline. And you can always chat with the guest to find out more about their travel plans, to help put your mind at ease.

That will depend on your vehicle, where it’s located, how much you charge, and when it’s available. EV daily listing prices in the UK ranged from £23 to £371 over the last year.  For example, Turo hosts list Tesla Ys for around £108 per day. Turo has tools to help you set the right price.

See how much you could make with Turo’s car sharing calculator, the Calculator!

Car sharing connects travellers and neighbours with local hosts who share their personal vehicles. This means guests can pick the exact vehicle they want and can pick it up from a convenient nearby location, or even have it delivered.

On the other hand, traditional car rental typically involves guests booking a category of vehicle that often needs to be collected directly from the car rental location which can be time consuming.

Your guests will be asked to rate your car on its cleanliness, so it also affects your rating as a host. Keep it as clean as you would expect it to be if you were a guest.

Keeping some cleaning spray and a cloth in an accessible part of the car is a good idea too.

You can decide if your car is pet-friendly or not. Guide dogs and assistance dogs are slightly different though, so you must accept them.

You can cancel a booking if your plans change, but it can disrupt a guest's plans and affect your reputation as a host. Please cancel only if it’s unavoidable. Bookings cancelled within 24 hours will attract a £50 cancellation fee. To read more about cancellations, see Turo’s cancellation policy.

When it's time to hand over the keys, you've got two options:

1. In-person check-in
2. Use Turo Go (if your car is compatible)

With Turo Go, the guest does everything, from unlocking the car with their phone to taking before and after photos of the outside and inside of the car. You just leave the keys in a secure box in the glove compartment. Check to see if your car is compatible with Turo Go.

For in-person check-in, you'll use the Turo app to take photos of the condition of the car, and then the app will prompt you to check the driver's licence against the details on the booking. These photos are held by Turo in case there is any dispute about the condition of the car.

For more details on how to check in your guest, see Turo’s checking in guests guide.

You can either offer unlimited mileage or set a daily mileage limit, from 100 miles for Super Deluxe vehicles, 150 miles for Deluxe, and 200 miles for standard vehicles. If you are nearing the limit of your annual mileage, you can always reach out to Octopus Electric Vehicles to discuss having it extended.

Turo cars are all smoke-free for both guests and hosts, so you can’t list a car you smoke in, and guests are not allowed to smoke in your car.

Drivers have to be over the age of 21 and under the age of 74 to borrow your car. Most EVs are over insurance class 16, and therefore drivers will have to be over age 25. You can find out more about eligibility requirements from Turo.

When you share your car on Turo, you can choose between two protection plans: the 65 plan and the 75 plan. The 65 plan means you take 65% of the trip price with nothing to pay in case of physical damage to your vehicle. The 75 plan means you take 75% of the trip price, but there’s a deductible in the event of damage. Separately, third-party auto liability insurance is always included and provided by Aioi Nissay Dowa Insurance UK Ltd via Turo broker Aon UK Ltd.

Whether you will have to pay tax on your Turo earnings depends on how much you earn. However, you're responsible for sorting out your taxes.

In the UK, there's a tax-free 'trading allowance' of £1,000 for activities like lending out your car. You can find more details on the HMRC website.

Preferably, yes. Turo recommends that you add a pre-paid charging option so that your guest can return the car with a low battery, but pay you the cost of recharging it. However, if you prefer, you can request they return the car fully charged.

If you’ve still got more questions, head over to Turo’s help section.