Power user Glen A. knows he can always count on Turo

posted on March 30, 2022

From completing day-to-day tasks with an economical, pet-friendly vehicle to cruising in a luxury car for the weekend, Glen makes the most out of the vast selection of makes and models on Turo.

When he decided to adopt Steve, a Labrador mix from the U.S., Glen had to pick him up from a meeting spot in Burlington, Ontario. There was a lot to think about. How would he adjust to his new home? Would he get along well with his smaller dog, Apricot? The last thing he wanted to think about was transportation logistics.

“I do have a car. It’s an older Toyota and it’s not as reliable as it used to be,” Glen explains. “And there’s only so much you can fit in a Toyota. So if I need a van or something, Turo’s just where I look now. A dog crate for a medium- to large-sized car is not gonna fit in your Toyota. So I grabbed a pet-friendly Dodge Caravan and took off. It was a seamless transition.”

As a frequent guest, Glen has racked up over 70 trips on Turo since joining in June 2018, for everything from running errands to taking family members to doctor’s appointments. He found Turo the way most guests do: searching for a traditional rental car. So why choose Turo?

“I thought it was a great idea. It was more economical than going to Budget or Hertz or those other ones. It seemed more like a grassroots, down-to-earth type of thing. And you have more choices. And it’s way more convenient because you don’t have to go to their office, you go wherever their host is. And living in Toronto, you’ve got a lot of hosts, so it’s been fairly easy to find the vehicles that you want to drive.”

His first trip was a Toyota Matrix that belonged to a host named Brad. At the time Glen was working as a personal support worker. Both Glen’s friend, Vanessa, and Glen’s brother live with cerebral palsy, giving Glen a unique understanding of how to provide appropriate support. He started using Turo after his Toyota broke down, when he needed a car to transport Vanessa to important doctor’s appointments.

“We have medical appointments out of the city and if you miss them, you’re gonna be waiting another year for a specialist,” Glen explains. “If you miss it, you’re kind of at the bottom of their list again. So these are the types of things that I’ve been using it for.”

Glen recalls Brad being extremely communicative and willing to walk the first-time guest through the process so he could understand what Turo was all about. It made for a great first experience. Now, three years later, he still doesn’t hesitate to encourage others to give Turo a try.

“I was in the dog park not too long ago and one of the women was saying that she needed to get a rental and she was using Communauto. I said, ‘Why don’t you go with Turo?” and she said, ‘Well, I don’t know about driving somebody else’s car.’”

“And my response was, ‘Well, everybody is driving the Communauto cars already!’. With Turo, you get a bigger choice of vehicles because Communauto always uses the Mazda3s or whatever they’re using, and you get the big vinyl logo on the side. Everybody knows you’re driving a Communauto car. If you’re driving a Turo and you go ahead and try out a Tesla, people are going to say, ‘Hey, nice car!’ There’s that kind of level to Turo that you don’t get with the other alternatives out there.”

This variety has allowed Glen to book everything from economical cars for getting from Point A to B to bigger cars when he needs extra space to welcome new furry friends. Overall, he’s been thrilled with the hosts he’s had, and he dreams of getting behind the wheel of his dream car: a Tesla. But his Turo wish list extends beyond just cars. The motorcycle enthusiast says he can’t wait for the day Turo starts offering bikes to guests.

“My first license was my motorcycle license. I didn’t have a car license for like five years after that. I rode my bike through the winter for fifteen years.”

While there aren’t motorcycles on Turo, Glen’s not too bothered. He’s having a great time with the cars that are available and says on the rare occasion there’s an unexpected detour, he can count on Turo to get him back on the track towards a great guest experience.

“Even when there are problems, when you call in for any kind of help, the staff really steps up and goes above and beyond what other companies would do to make sure that you’re okay, and I really appreciate that.”