Turo is a car-sharing service launched in 2009 (under the name RelayRides). It has become a popular car rental platform, and so whether you need a large vehicle for a road trip, economical transportation for when you're out of town, or even seat time in a model you’re thinking of buying, you might well have come across it. In this guide we explain how Turo works, and offer some tips for a successful Turo experience.
How Does Turo Work?
- What is Turo?
- How to Rent a Car on Turo
- Picking Up and Dropping Off
- Insurance Coverage on Turo
- Turo vs. Traditional Car Rentals
- Tips for a Successful Turo Experience
What is Turo?
Think of Turo as the Airbnb of cars. The car-sharing marketplace allows vehicle owners (aka hosts) to rent out their own cars to strangers. It’s a low-effort source of additional income, one that may defray the costs associated with owning a vehicle you don’t need to access regularly, and it's an alternative to ride-share driving for folks intersted in making some extra cash from their car.
Given that consumers own more diverse and often better equipped vehicles than traditional rental fleet companies, renters (aka guests) are likely to have a lot more choice through Turo than they would at Hertz or other major car rental companies.
How to Rent a Car on Turo
To rent cars on Turo in the United States, you need to be at least 18 years old. (Other markets like Australia, Canada, France, and the United Kingdom have different requirements.)
Young drivers (those under 25) may also have to pay a fee of up to $50 a day or purchase a protection plan, and they cannot rent a vehicle that’s worth $45,000 or more.
All users need a valid driver’s license and to create an account, which Turo must verify and approve. This could take a few days but is often completed within 24 hours. Once that’s done, you can book cars via the Turo app (iOS and Android) or Turo.com. Both allow you to search for rentals by location, daily price, body style, number of seats, specific makes and models and more.
Payment is handled either via credit card, debit card, Revolut prepaid cards, and Apple Pay and Google Pay.
The number of vehicle options varies by location, but you should be able to find what you need—be it an electric car like those made by Tesla or a sports car, SUV, minivan, or pickup truck—wherever you are. The options are particularly diverse in major cities like New York or San Francisco.
Prices also vary greatly depending on the type of vehicle and other factors like the length of your rental and whether you’re purchasing extras such as a car seat or a roof rack, which some hosts offer.
Picking Up and Dropping Off
Turo hosts choose how they want vehicle pick-up and drop-off to work. Some are willing to bring the vehicle to you, either for free or for a fee, while others require you to travel to where the car is parked. (Many people use Uber, Lyft, or other rideshare services in the latter circumstance.) Since each Turo listing is different, it is imperative that renters read the details closely.
Unlike traditional car rental, Turo does not have a dedicated airport location, but hosts can and do leave vehicles in the airport parking lot. Specific instructions for how to access the car’s fob/key differ. Some hosts will put the fob in an RF-blocking pouch and lock it inside the vehicle. They then require the guest to contact them when they’re next to the vehicle, at which point the host will remotely unlock the door through the car’s app and tell them where to find the fob. Others leave the key or fob in a lock box attached to the vehicle and simply give the guest a code.
Many modern vehicles are eligible for Turo Go booking, which allows guests to access cars via the Turo app. This also requires the owner to leave the fob in an RF-blocking pouch inside the vehicle.
Regardless of the pick-up process, as part of the check-in process, both hosts and guests are required to upload photos of the exterior and interior to the app showing the car’s condition both before and after the rental period. This helps Turo account for any damage that happens to a vehicle and makes sure you aren’t blamed for pre-existing issues.
As with picking up the car, there’s a procedure for dropping it off. It should be fueled up and left at a designated spot, oftentimes at that same place that you picked it up. Guests can coordinate with the host, though, to see if alternate arrangements are available. The host will tell you what to do with the key/fob.
Insurance Coverage on Turo
Just like with a traditional car rental, Turo guests are responsible for returning a vehicle in the same condition in which they received it.
Turo offers guests three insurance coverage plans. Each provides a physical damage contract (that doesn’t include mechanical or interior damage) and level of liability insurance, but the deductibles of the various auto insurance plans vary. The Minimum plan ensures that guests are liable for no more than $3,000 out of pocket in such damages. Step up to the Standard plan and that figure slides to $500, while the top Premier plan eliminates this burden altogether.
Renters can also decline Turo's insurance, but before doing so, it's wise to look over your personal insurance policy to make sure it covers car-sharing services, not just traditional rentals.
Turo also offers a handful of car insurance levels for hosts. The most costly plan reimburses car owners for 100% of the eligible damage costs, while the cheapest one has a $2,500 deductible. Turo’s protection plan for hosts is provided by Travelers Excess and Surplus Lines Company.
Turo vs. Traditional Car Rentals
Turo has a few advantages over traditional car rental. For one, the selection of vehicles is broader, and you know exactly the car you are going to get, with hosts providing photos and a description of the model’s features. Chain rental companies, on the other hand, offer you whatever’s available in the size class you reserved, and sometimes not even that.
Turo also provides far more flexibility for car pick-up and drop-off than the traditional companies do, which can save you a lot of hassle and time.
Rental car companies typically don’t keep vehicles in their fleets for more than a year or two, which means you’re bound to get a modern car. Turo’s eligibility requirements are more lax. At the time the host submits it for approval, a car must be under 12 years old and have less than 130,000 miles on the odometer (though there are exceptions for classic cars). Depending on where the vehicle is registered, it may need to have an annual inspection, which can be done virtually or in person with a qualified vendor.
Finally, while some Turo car rentals can be very expensive (try booking a Porsche 911, for instance), older and less-desirable models may provide an opportunity for renters to save money.
You can, of course, avoid booking a Turo car that’s too old for comfort, though older vehicles are often available for considerably less than a similarly sized model from a traditional car rental agency. That makes Turo a great option for renters on a strict budget.
Like traditional rental cars, many Turo vehicles offer unlimited mileage, but specialty vehicles — such as, say, a classic American muscle car — often have daily limits (and fees for exceeding it).
Both Turo and most major car rental companies have roadside assistance programs available to renters.
Finally, Turo hosts and guests can rate each other based on their experience. This can help guests find particularly good (or avoid particularly bad) hosts, and hosts can be aware of guests who have had problematic bookings in the past.
Hosts can cancel a guest’s reservation, and vice versa, but there are cancellation penalties for doing so.
Tips for a Successful Turo Experience
If you're considering using Turo, be sure to register for the service at least a week before you plan to reserve your first rental, as you’ll need to be approved.
Unless you are after a specific vehicle, keep your search broad and compare similar models to get a good deal. And before reserving a car, read the host’s description thoroughly as they may have rules and limitations regarding pick-up, drop-off, and use that might make the rental more or less desirable to you.
To protect yourself, take detailed photos of the car (not just the requested shots) before you start the rental. If you happen to damage the vehicle during the rental, alert the host as soon as it is safe to do so.
