I am new to the forum but a long time atv rider. I am interested in
your feedback about a business idea I'm exploring.

I see so many recreational vehicles (atvs, motorcycles, boats, etc. . .) sitting in storage or garages and I have so many friends wanting to rent to ride with me but most of our rides are short 2-3 rides and rentals don't make sense for half days when most require full day rental.

The idea came to me that surely certain owners would be willing to
rent out their toys and make money on that "unused utility"
during the times they don't use it themselves as long as the transaction
is easy and their liability/damage risks are covered.

What do you think about the idea?

I'm interested in your feedback here and would love if any of you took my survey. That way, I can tally all feedback and make statistically sound decisions.

Here is the link: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s....YK6CK1hjSdqqABA_3d_3d


Thanks in advance for any feedback you can offer.

Chris

 

OK, I started filling out the survey but stopped. Bottom line is that the only conditions that I would consider renting or loaning out my stuff would be to someone that I know. Even at that - reluctantly. From your list, I have ATV's, boat, truck and trailer. I loaned the trailer out to a friend once, he went down the wrong road and did several hundred dollars worth of damage. He fixed it of course, as I knew he would but it was still a pain.

While your basic logic makes sense, profit in a rental venture works differently then just using eguipment that otherwise may be idle. In a rental business, you invest in the equipment, rent it out for a fairly short season (like a year) and then sell the equipment while it still has a good value. You really only make your money after you sell. Hopefully your rental fees will cover maintenance, depreciation and insurance during the rental period. Renting out older equipment becomes a maintenance nightmare plus breakdowns on customers time will be bad for business. In short, it's not that easy to turn a profit in renting ATV's. I'd expect that the most profitable ventures are the beach rentals - fairly high price for a rent by the hour deal.

For myself, you could not set up enough safeguards that I would be willing to let my ATV's rent out. Trail riding can be rough on ATV's anyway, throw in a rider who really doesn't care about his rented ride and you're going to see some broken bikes. All it would take is one inexperienced rider burying it in a mudhole and sucking slime into the motor to toast the engine. Add that to the liability issues and I've got to say that I would not be interested.

Jaybee

 

I'd let only my good friends borrow my atv. They know the deal,you break something you replace it.And the tank better be full when it's returned.Also a quick run to the car wash is highly appreciated.But notice a say borrow,I may want to borrow a boat or water craft sometime.Same rules apply.But this does bring up another subject.You never know who your TRUE friends are till something happens.

 

same here. i will only let close friends used my toys. i borrowed one of my buddies crotch rocket for a weekend ride. while i was at the store paying to fill it up with gas a truck bumped it and knoked it over costing bout 700.00 to fix it plus the paint job. the driver paid for it of course but the moral of the story is that the bike was in my care at the time and it was a pain to get it fixed and my friend wasn't to happy. so no i wouldn't rent my atv to someone i didn't even know....................shea......................

 

Ever rent a car????

I'd never rent anything that I own. People that don't own it don't care about it.

NUFF SAID!

 

I have thought about this a while and cant imagine wanting to rent out any of my toys or my rv. Too much for me to lose.

 

With the price of a new bike these days it would be real hard for me personally to let anybody even borrow my bike/bikes mutch less rent them. I would be pretty upset if It came back broke in any way. I might be a little bit selfish but it is the way I feal about something tahat I worked real hard to have.As said before no one will car for you toys as mutch as you do!!!!!!!!

 

Ya, I think 90% will never loan out their atv. The key would be finding those who have the extra's as you say. I have an old warrior that gave $400 for. Sure I'd loan it knowing I'd have it payed for.

Also, check local laws. Pretty sure it's illegal to rent atv's here in OK.

 

Not a CHANCE of me renting any of my toys...WAY to much LIABILITY on MY behalf, even with insurance.

ONLY my BEST friend Jeff can use my ATV---I'd trust him with my house key and bank account number.

The rest of the folks? I'd let them RIDE an ATV of mine as long as I was personally along on the trip with them to keep an EYE on whats going on.

 

Overcoming Abuse

Most if not all of you point to examples about machines being abused. My business idea includes several features that I hope would eliminate. What do you think?

Here they are -

1. Feedback scores - both owners and renters would be given feedback and future transactions would hinge on a clean record. This is the way Amazon and eBay work and the system is successful. I've transacted with 30+ strangers and been burnt once (I learned my lesson because he only had 3 feedback scores).

2. Background verification - owners and buyers pay $5 to have a limited background check confirming a physical resident address with their name.

3. Credit check - one time for $25 - this speeds up the process for people who want a super simple transaction (I understand this poses a hurdle for others and limits those who can transact but it may be a possibility)

4. Credit card transaction - the rental is transacted through my site before the day of the rental (pre-determined charges are arranged and can be adjusted by the owner renting out a vehicle and confirmed by renter at any time). There will need to be some conflict resolution services on my side just like PayPal offers.

5. Credit card Deposit - not sure how to do this but I intend to look into how I can confirm a credit card purchase amount for a deposit commensurate with the value of the vehicle whether it be a motorcycle or RV.

6. Confirmed commercial insurance policy - Owners would have to have a confirmed commercial insurance policy for physical damage on the vehicle to cover above the deposit which a renter would pay.

7. Waivers - would exclude owner from physical personal injury of renter - I'm investigating the strength of these waivers in court and my and the owner's legal liabilities.

8. Extensive check-in and check-out forms - The owner of each vehicle would be responsible to manage wear and tear and take pictures before and after a use as well as keep a written record. I'd probably recommend renters bring along their own digital camera to do the same in case of dispute.

9. Trip Report - Renters would need to file a request in the application listing who would ride and where the vehicle would be taken. This would bind them to penalties if they violated this request. For example if a RV was driven 1000 miles in three days compared to 100 miles. Rates would be set based on that with stiff penalties.

10. Copy of a renters license on file - the website would have a copy of the renter's license on file or would require a copy be left with the owner.

What do you think? Would these items change any of your mind?

My intent is to filter out the punks who would abuse my stuff and to provide access to recreational vehicles by responsible people like yourselves and me.



Perfect Scenario
Can you imagine how cool it would be if you wanted to travel to Lake Tahoe and found Joe who owned two snowmobiles. You get a better rate and better terms from him than you would at a traditional rental shop. You discover Joe rides those machines only when his family comes for Christmas and they sit idle most of the year. He is the type that loves strangers and he tells you with maps the best trails to ride while you are in Tahoe. He doesn't care about money since he bought these things outright so he rents them to you for 25% below the market price and he doesn't mind that you keep them Friday through Sunday and only ride two days - he is only charging the two days you rode them since he is really covering the "normal use" wear on those machines.

You know how nice this system is and you don't abuse the machines and return them to him in person. Plus, you know how crappy you'd feel having to return these items to their owner in less than perfect condition. (Rental shops are plagued with shifting staff - check out in the morning from Bob the local high schooler and check in at the end of the day with scratches to Angie who doesn't look closely at the check-out record. That is exactly why the current Rental Shop Units are thrashed - little accountability.)

In the end you had a great time on his toys and you made a new acquaintance that you might stay in touch at some other point. Imagine, with every trip or every season, you rent boats, atvs, motorcycles, etc. . . using vehicles you know have been cared for because you rent from people like you.

Am I smoking something? I don't know. Are the concerns too high to overcome? I don't know. I'm still figuring this out.

Lastly, if willing, I'd really like to add your feedback to my survey takers - getting it there means I can roll it all together and make statistically sound decisions.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s....B0HvE_2bAIwULvQ_3d_3d


Thanks a million. I love that the world is full of cool people like you who give a stranger like me a few of your thoughts.

If you are ever in Reno, NV let me know. I'd love to meet you in person and go out to lunch.

Chris