Who knew you could swap cars legally. I guess I have never owned a vehicle that other people, other than those taking the bus, wanted to drive. Think about the liability and insurance issues related to sharing cars worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.
I would bet that is a pretty exclusive club with extensive background checks, right? One such club in California should have done a little more research.
San Francisco-based HiGear, a peer-to-peer car-sharing service focused on luxury vehicles, is shutting down due to theft incidents involving its members’ cars. The news is somewhat shocking given that HiGear was seemingly doing so well in recent months. The company had expanded to L.A. in November, and was planning expansions to additional markets, including Portland and San Diego, by year-end.
How to Steal a Lamborghini
Unlike other car-sharing services, HiGear specialized in “high-end” auto brands only, like Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Aston Martin, Lamborghini and Tesla. It provided comprehensive liability and collision insurance and performed member screening, which included driving record checks and credit checks. It also collected a security deposit in order to “encourage safe and fair use of members’ cars.” In additional to the rental fee ($125-600, depending on the car), drivers would pay $20-40 per day in rental insurance.
These protections proved to be insufficient, however, when HiGear was targeted by a criminal ring. The group stole four cars totaling $400,000. The criminals used stolen identities to bypass HiGear’s security checks, and stolen credit cards to pay HiGear’s fees.
Police have since recovered some of the cars and insurance is now processing claims for the rest, but the incident has forced HiGear to realize that this sort of thing may not be preventable in the future. A month after the incidents occurred, the company made the tough decision to suspend operations and shut the business down.
Never underestimate a thief. The world would be a much better, safe and more affordable place if thieves did not exist.