If you’ve got a car sitting around and you’re not using it, you can start earning money by renting out your car as a side hustle. Fortunately, there are some great services that pay you for letting them use your car when otherwise parked in your driveway.
Renting out your vehicle can help you offset the cost of ownership. A new AAA study reveals it costs an average of almost $9,000 a year to own a car. There are several options for renting out your property, and the process is easy to get started with.
Once your profiles have been set up, you will be ready to start renting out your car for money.
Renting Out Your Car
There are many car rental sites to choose from and each has its own advantages. Choose the service that suits you best, based on platform requirements, area availability, and payout terms that will give you the biggest value when renting out your car.
1. HyreCar
- Receive $75 with a three day rental
- Milestones earn you rewards
- HyreCar provides car insurance
HyreCar is all about Uber & Lyft drivers. With it, their cars are rented out by ridesharing companies. That way your vehicle can be used for productive purposes where it might otherwise have been collecting dust in your driveway or elsewhere
HyreCar claims that they are able to generate an average of $14,000 per year for the average car owner. This can be a nice supplement to your income that you earn by letting others use your vehicle when you’re not using it.
Setting up an ad listing is free and easy. You’ll need to describe your car, then upload some photos & vehicle documents. Once someone requests to rent it out you’ll get notified.
The quicker you respond to a request, the higher chance you’ll have of getting picked. According to HyreCar, drivers who book multiple vehicles will increase their odds of being given a task. The person who responds first gets it.
After accepting this request, double-check the accuracy of all documents for your car. Typically insured is issued a day before vehicle pickup.
To prevent any unnecessary delays, be sure your vehicle is registered and inspected before handing off the keys.
Organizing Car Drop-off
You should coordinate with the renter to complete the transfer. Make sure you verify the person’s driver license, walk around the car, and check the amount of gas the car has.
The fee for renting out your car is automatically charged once you confirm your request. Funds should arrive as soon as the driver picks up the vehicle.
When your rental is up, you’ll need to coordinate a pickup time and location. Make sure you’ve checked over the car before doing the drop-off.
According to Hyrecar, all car owners are covered under the best insurance tailored to rideshare drivers.
2. Turo
- The most popular car rental platform
- Turo offers several protection plans
- Many tools for car renters
When you need to rent out your personal vehicle, Turo is a great option for drivers in US cities and select Canadian provinces. In many ways, it’s the Airbnb of automobiles.
Posting your car on the site is 100% free so you have nothing to lose. All you need to do is upload some clear, detailed photos and provide a few details about your ride. You can also select when your car rental will be available in the booking calendar so it suits your needs.
You’ll get a notification anytime someone books your vehicle. If you have any questions or need more detailed information about the meeting point, you can always chat with the renter.
Turo recommends running a quick check on the renter’s license and performing a general inspection of your vehicle before handing over the keys. You’ll want to take note of the mileage and gas tank levels.
Insurance Coverage On Turo
24/7 roadside assistance is available for all guests. Turo also has $1 million in liability coverage for their hosts.
When your guest is finished with the car, meet them at a designated location and make sure everything is working properly. Get your keys back and head home. You should receive your payout within five days by direct deposit.
You’ll earn a 65% to 85% payout for your trips depending on the vehicle protection package you choose. If you have commercial rental insurance, you can waive Turo’s protection and get a whopping 90% payout.
You need to have fewer than 130,000 miles on your car, a clean title, the market value should be no more than $150,000 and you can’t have previously declared it a total loss.
Turo also advertises their rentals of classic cars. The guidelines are different than your typical car rental. They won’t accept any cars newer than 1990.
3. Getaround
- Offers contactless options
- Access to an account manager
- Some areas offer up to $1 million in protection
Getaround calculates that it can make you thousands of dollars by renting out your car on their platform. If you rent out your vehicle for a month, for example, Getaround estimates that you can make you around $800.
This means that with the income generated by Getaround, you could cover your monthly car payments.
If you rent out your car on the platform, Getaround will offer you $50 in credit for rentals.
Hosts also have access to select parking spots in participating cities.
When you rent your car out with Getaround it carries a $1 million primary policy inclusive of liability, collision, property damage as well as uninsured motorist protection and theft.
Painless Setup
Getaround’s free car setup process lets you come up with a personalized URL for your car and choose the pickup location. The calendar feature lets you set availability over certain periods of time. Setting up your car on Getaround is quick, convenient & easy.
Once you sign up for the service, somebody from the Getaround team will pick up your car to take photos of it – including high-quality ones of your car’s interior. They’ll also install a device called Getaround Connect that allows renters to unlock and find your car more easily during the rental.
Getaround Connect offers security features like GPS tracking, tamper detection & engine lock.
Sign up for a free trial of Getaround and pay a one-time installation fee. The company will then charge $99 per install & $20 per month thereafter
Rental earnings for a car accrued monthly and payments are made on the 15th of the following month. They give you 60% of the total rental value.
Getaround keeps 40% of the commission to provide members with coverage for insurance, roadside assistance, and a 24/7 help desk.
4. TravelCar
- Earn while your car is parked
- Earn free parking when your vehicle isn’t rented
- $1 million in coverage
Wouldn’t it be cool if you could get compensated for your car while you are gone? TravelCar has found a way to capitalize on the cars that are empty when their owners are out of town.
TravelCar will pay per mile that your car is driven and they will give you free parking. They also throw in a free car wash when your car is returned.
The platform, just like all the other ones, offers liability coverage up to $1 million. TravelCar also boasts you still get free parking, regardless if your car is rented.
Nowadays, many people who rent a car end up going with TravelCar instead of the traditional car rentals that we’re all used to these days. As a result, they can save more compared to traditional rental places.
TravelCar provides discounted airport parking. If you’d rather not share your car, TravelCar will still provide you lower rates than anywhere else in the area.
5. Avail
- $1 million liability coverage
- 150 Mile limit, extra after that
- New users get $100 bonus
Avail uses platform based parking lots, leaving your car open to any Avail members looking to rent a car.
Compensation for a day’s rental is in the neighborhood of $20-$25 for smaller cars, and up to $30-$40 for large SUVs.
When you rent a car, you’ll get complimentary fill-ups at the end of your trip. And, Allstate roadside assistance is included as well – just in case you need a tow or tire change.
The owner of a rental car has a limit on the mileage that can be driven per day. Once it reaches 150, the guest will have to pay extra for any mileage they drive over this amount.
In order to use the Avail platform, you’ll need a vehicle that’s under 10 years old and has less than 125,000 miles on it. It also needs to be in good working condition.
How Much Do You Earn
Earnings will vary on the platform, your location, and demand for your specific car. There’s also a difference in payout depending if you have a traditional car compared to an SUV or truck.
If you list your car on Turo for $50 dollars a day, you’ll end up between $30-$45.
You can use Turo’s online calculator to estimate how much you can earn by renting out your car.
HyreCar claims hosts make around $14,000 per year for renting out your car.
Important Things To Know Before Renting Out Your Car
After learning about 5 car rental platforms, there are several important things to consider.
Ensure that you carefully read every car rental’s terms of service so you know exactly what you’re getting yourself into.
You need to understand exactly what each coverage plan entails so you’re not unprepared in case of an accident when renting out your car.
You’ll want to document your car before every rental. The more photos the better security you’ll have if a claim ever happens. You don’t want to end up having your car totaled and not get funded for it.
Summary On Renting Out Your Car
This is a great way to earn passive income for those who are looking to earn extra money on the side or start a side hustle.
Since you control when you’re renting out your car, you can do this with your primary car. If you have one, you can do it with your spare vehicle.