The joys and sorrows of self-drive car rental

(Baonghean) -According to statistics from the authorities, there are currently nearly 40 “self-driving” car rental establishments in the province with nearly 300 cars of various types and models. There are also many concerns surrounding the issue of rental owners and renters.

A few years ago, seeing that the real estate business seemed to be "stagnant" for a long time, Mr. Nguyen Van Binh (Quan Bau ward - Vinh city) switched to the "self-driving car rental" business. At that time, in his eyes, this profession had the opportunity to "prosper". The reason was that in Vinh city, there were up to 7 driving training centers where students were always crowded. Furthermore, through a "survey", he realized one thing, out of 10 "guys" with a driver's license, at best only 1 or 2 people could afford to buy a car right after that. Of the remaining, up to half of them became addicted to the steering wheel after their driving lessons. And they did not hesitate to spend money to rent a car to drive to ease their "missing the job"; or to solve the "prestige" when necessary. At that time, there were quite a few businesses in the area renting cars, but Mr. Binh thought that this profession could still be profitable if they knew how.

A self-drive car rental location on Nguyen Du Street (Vinh City). Photo: Canh Nam

After a few months of hunting, Mr. Binh bought 5 used cars of the popular "system" such as Matiz, Kia Moming, Hundai Gez, Zaze. Next, he "touched up" and "painted" everything from the shell to the interior. With prices ranging from 300 to 700 thousand VND depending on the number of seats plus a few reasonable promotions, his company often had a situation of "running out of cars". And on holidays, it goes without saying. Thanks to that, in just a few years, he had 5 cars for free. He would have recouped his investment sooner if a few months before, a customer who did not know how to drive crashed into an electric pole on Hong Bang Street, the front of the car was damaged, and the customer was seriously injured and had to go all the way to Hanoi for treatment. That time, he lost more than a hundred million VND because he did not have time to buy insurance.

Although he encountered a few "bad lucks", the car rental business like Mr. Binh's is still considered a smooth business. The case of Mr. Pham Van Khanh in Ben Thuy ward is different. After retiring after more than 20 years of working as a driver in an administrative agency, in 2010, he decided to mortgage his red book to the bank to borrow nearly half a billion VND plus his house equity, buying two cars from a "tycoon" in Ha Tinh to sell at a loss to pay off the debt. He hung up the "Car rental for self-drive" sign the day before, and the next day, customers came to rent. Business was going smoothly until before the recent Tet Quy Ty, he encountered "bad luck". That day, two young customers came to rent two cars at the same time.

The contract, the agreement, complete and neat as usual. Unexpectedly, not only was it overdue, but nearly half a month later, both the car and the customer disappeared. Panicked, he reported to the police. It turned out that his two cars were in two pawnshops. The two "regular customers" were in the custody of Vinh City Police for gambling. Needless to say, the car owner had to work hard, both in terms of time and money, to get the two cars back.

Later, he realized that he was still lucky, because there were car owners who suffered much more because after renting a car, they pawned it at a pawn shop with a fake ID card. When everything was revealed, getting the car home was also "scratched to pieces".

A customer of a self-drive car rental shop confirmed: Some owners of self-drive car rental shops are also very formidable. Once he was fined by the police for not using the turn signal when turning. After checking, it turned out that the light had been broken for a long time. However, the owner insisted that the renter was the one who broke it. Not to mention scratches or minor damages. Renting a car without checking carefully is like eating a bag full of shit. Moreover, most renters are inexperienced drivers. While many rental cars have a good exterior, their engines are weak, so accidents or violations are very likely to happen. Especially if there is an accident, the owner will be compensated by the insurance agency and the renter will pay for the repair, which is a great deal. Even better, if the car violates traffic safety and is detained by the police, the longer the car owner benefits. Because according to the contract, the customer just has to pay. Whether the car is on the road or at the police station, the car owner does not need to know.

Viet Long