FlightCar has something for car owners who use their cars for only a couple of days a month. The company rents out travelers’ cars while they are not in town. But on Monday, FlightCar announced a new service that pays car owners $150 to $400 for allowing the company access to cars for 26 days per month. The owners are paid even if their cars are not rented out.
FlightCar is looking for people living in the city who have to pay for parking in their residential area. The company said that it is a type of free parking program that comes with guaranteed income as well as limited commercial use of the vehicle. The company gets the car from the owner, applies insurance for the car for up to $1 million, park it in a secure parking lot, and wash it after every rental.
Owners can use their cars for four day a month. They can pick it up for free at the company’s lot. Or if the car owner prefers for it to be delivered, a fee of $20 will be charged. If the car is rented out during that day, another car will be provided by the company.
If the car owner needs to use the car more than four days a month, the owner is charged a rental fee that ranges from $23 to $48 per day. The amount is deducted from the monthly payment from the company.
In order to be part of the program, car owners can go to FlightCar’s web site. The company is based in Cambridge and started by three teenagers. It operates in Boston and San Francisco. At present, the company faces a lawsuit filed by San Francisco for refusing to pay the fees required from rental car companies operating at the San Francisco International Airport.
