<p>We are living in NYC and probably will not own a car. I am considering Zipcar as the main source of transportation when I need to leave town for a day or two, or running some errands. </p>
<p>If your kid has used Zipcar or you have personal experience, could you tell me some of the good and bad experiences? According to Zipcar, one could extend the time if the car is available. Is it a hassle? How easy is it to reserve a car in a major city? What about minor scratches? Do they hit people for every little scratch? I read the insurance coverage, it includes 300K comprehensive/instance for people over 21.</p>
<p>My son used Zipcar extensively when he lived in San Diego for three years, mostly for running errands and for social occasions.</p>
<p>He would never have used it if he needed to leave town for a day or two – it’s much too expensive to use it in that way. Regular rental cars are better for that purpose.</p>
<p>Zipcar is for when you need a car for hours, not days.</p>
<p>I don’t know about NYC, but in San Diego, my son rarely had difficulty reserving a Zipcar, although sometimes he had to walk a bit farther than he would have liked to get to it. My daughter now lives in DC. She doesn’t use Zipcar, but if she wanted to, I doubt she would have trouble. Two Zipcars live in her apartment building’s parking lot, and at most times, at least one of them is sitting there waiting for use. And if those two were in use, there would be others available in her neighborhood.</p>
<p>In NYC (not airports), one day rental is 75 (compact) to 200 for a minivan. I just rented a SUV yesterday for 150, and that didn’t include gas. </p>
<p>Did your son get hit with a lot of unexpected charges?</p>
<p>D used Zipcars in Boston, and it was much cheaper than having a car. Her college rate was, as I recall, $8/hour up to the max $60/day, including gas, tolls, insurance and 180 miles driving distance/day, so it would have been definitely cheaper than a rental if she needed to rent for a whole day (she never did).</p>
<p>She was once hit with a charge because she forgot to sign out (I do not know what the procedure for that is), but she called their customer srvice, and the charge was promptly reversed. She says that if all rules are followed correctly, there is never a problem.</p>
<p>The one problem with zip cars that my daughter sometimes experienced is that her reserved car wasn’t there: people would simply keep it past their agreed time and pay a fine. This was sometimes the case on weekends, or when there was an extended hard rain. It’s true that customer service at zip car was very good, and she inevitably got a car, just had to wait a bit until an available one was located. Overall, it’s a great system: she used it for 5 years in Boston, last year in NYC, and plans to use it when she moves to DC in the fall. Let’s hear it for living car-less.</p>
<p>The only time S had a problem with Zipcar was the same as katliamom’s D. He needed the Zipcar to get to a wedding rehearsal, but his reserved car wasn’t there at the appointed time. He did eventually get a car, but with the delay and unanticipated traffic, he missed the rehearsal. Fortunately, he was renting a car for the actual wedding since he was staying overnight and missing the rehearsal didn’t cause any problems.</p>
<p>I have friends whose “second car” is renting Zipcars … they love the service and have only had two issues. First, a couple times the person renting “their” car was late returning the car and they had to wait … they have rented Zipcars tons of times and only had this happen a couple of times. Second, they were very early adopters of using the service so initially they never had an issue getting the car they wanted, when they wanted, and where they wanted … now that Zipcar is booming in Boston they occasionally have to be a little flexible on their rental because of overall demand.</p>
<p>We used Zipcar often when we were car-free and the only problem we had was once when the key card wouldn’t work and it was pouring rain. Not fun at all. H works downtown and takes public transportation to work and will sometimes use a Zipcar for off-site errands during the day. They are the way to go if you need a short-term vehicle. Things must have changed, though, because when we first signed up I don’t think you could rent if you were under 21.</p>
<p>On college campuses you can be under 21. My kids used them on their campuses in LA, California and in Durham, NC. I thought the fine for returning it late was pretty steep.</p>
<p>Son does not see the need for a car on campus so for the instances where there is no public transportation access off campus, a Zipcar has come in handy. If he knows he’s running late, he extends his rental time with his smartphone. The one time he received a warning was when he returned the car with less than a quarter tank of gas. He’s never had a problem with car availability. He has reported minor scratches before using the car. Since the rental price includes a gas card and insurance, the occasional use is cheaper than maintaining a car in college. Son was 19 when he drove his first Zipcar.</p>
<p>Not that I know of. I didn’t specifically ask, but he often said that he was pleased with the service, and he wouldn’t have said that if he was being hit with unexpected charges.</p>
<p>The only problem we had the car would not unlock for us in an underground parking lot and had to locksmith and wait a significant amount of time.</p>
<p>All of our city relatives use zip cars…and love them. A LOT less expensive than paying to park a car in NYC or Boston. Plus there is the flexibility of having different cars for,different purposes.</p>
<p>Funny, I have been researching this after hearing about insurance concerns on another thread. For 18-21 year olds the zip car insurance it the state minimum. So in NY, it is about 40K. If you are over 21 it is 300K.</p>
<p>So I have been discussing this with my insurance, State Farm, who somehow didn’t even know what a Zip car was. In order to get an 18 year old better coverage they need to be included as an equal on your driving insurance policy, not as a additional driver</p>
<p>I’m not sure of all the repercussions of moving my S to be equal on the policy but I don’t want him driving a car with such minimal insurance.</p>
<p>If you don’t own a car and you want your child insured there is something called a non owned vehicle insurance but you cannot take that out if you already have insurance. </p>
<p>If anyone has more input, I’d loved to hear it.</p>