RelayRides is business venture where men and women can rent their cars to strangers from the company web site. For example, if you are going on a vacation and won’t need your car for the next month, you can rent it out and make some money on the side to help fund your entertainment overseas. The company has been backed by major investors like Google and General Motors, and has a user friendly web site that makes it easy to rent. The company will cover the background check on renters and will handle all the reservations and money collections. All you need to go is put your car on the website and wait for a check to come in the mail. As would be expected, RelayRides will pay themselves before sending the remainder of the rent to you.

RelayRides even has insurance covered. They will provide $1 million worth of insurance to the owner of the car, because they know that your insurance company might not cover damage that was inflicted by a renter. This is because when you are renting out your car, you are essentially embarking on a business venture with your vehicle, and that is not considered a personal accident. Insurance companies like USAA and Allstate have already insinuated that they may deny policies to people who rent out their cars to strangers in a business arrangement. Despite a few concerns from insurance companies, RelayRides says that they have never had a problem with a person losing their insurance because they partook in the program. While it may sound like a great way to get some extra cash, RelayRides also comes with some risks.

Recently, a person died in a car crash that involved a vehicle being rented through RelayRides. According to The New York Times, a family of four was in the rented vehicle when they crashed into another car. One of the young adults died and the others suffered injuries like facial fractures, loss of hand use for weeks, an injured him, and other debilitating injuries. Many of the victims were out of work for weeks. When the damages were added up, they totaled far past $1 million. The renter was put at financial risk, with the possibility of being forced to pay for the damage on her car because the medical expenses already sucked up the amount of insurance provided by RelayRides.

The woman who owned the car in this accident was a Google systems administrator named Liz Fong-Jones. She was horrified when she received a call from Relay Rides in February, saying that her 2003 Honda Civic Hybrid had been totaled. She got a check for replacements, and bought a new car, assuming that that was the end of her troubles. Yet her case got more complicated when she learned that a person had died in the collision. The driver of her car had been at fault for the accident, causing serious injuries to four passengers in the other vehicle. The victims’ wanted to sue for medical expenses and pain-and-suffering charges, but the man who had caused the accident was killed in the collision. So instead they went to Fong-Jones, who was the owner of the car and therefore liable for it.

Fong-Jones had $300,000 in coverage. Her insurance company has been encouraged to deny any claims that come in, but the company is now in a tough spot. There is a conflict because of the renter situation. While Ms. Fong has been denying any liability in the accident, she may end up paying the expenses of the accident. If you are thinking of renting your car out using a website rental service, then think twice. You may end up involved in a lawsuit. If you need help with a personal injury case involved a RelayRides vehicle, then talk to a car accident attorney today for aid!