Safe, clean cars mean better business
In an effort to improve safety as well as the health of hosts’ businesses — and to bring our policies more in line with consumers’ expectations — Turo will be making several policy and product changes regarding cleaning and smoking violations and vehicle inspections, effective in the coming weeks.
Requiring annual safety inspections for all vehicles
Vehicle safety is a critical concern for your guests, in addition to being vital to the health of your business. Well maintained cars can spend more time on the road and less time in the shop, so being proactive about keeping them in ship-shape can help promote a well oiled business. The off-season is also a good time to knock regular vehicle maintenance off your to-do list.
All vehicles in the US and Canada will be required to pass an annual safety inspection to remain listed on the marketplace.
How it works
Once a year, you’ll be required to complete an inspection with a qualified mechanic for each of your vehicles. Here’s what you should know:
- The inspection must cover all points listed in the inspection checklist, which you will find in your cars’ new Safety inspections tab.
- A qualified mechanic must inspect your vehicle, but they are not required to be ASE certified.
- Your mechanic should fill out the checklist and return it to you, so be sure to bring it to your inspection.
- You will be able to submit alternative inspection forms, like a state-required form or dealership form, as long as they include all of the requirements listed on our checklist.
- You will need to upload a photo or PDF of the completed checklist or alternative inspection form to show proof of your passing inspection.
Listing additional vehicles on Turo
When you list additional vehicles, you’ll now be required to submit a passing inspection within three months, by month end, from the day you list your car. If, however, the vehicle is a more recent model year — last year or newer — inspections are due within 12 months, at month end, from the list date.
If you’ve submitted a valid required maintenance inspection checklist for a safety or maintenance issue within 12 months of your annual inspection due date, you can resubmit that checklist to satisfy your annual inspection requirement. Your next annual inspection will be due within 12 months, at month end, from the date of that required maintenance inspection.
Visit your Host Hub to check the inspection due date for each of your vehicles.
If you miss your inspection due date
Each annual inspection will be due 12 months from the date of the last inspection, by month end. If you don’t submit your annual inspection by the due date, Turo will automatically unlist your vehicle. Guests won’t be able to book new trips until you submit your passing inspection, but any existing trips will be upheld and trip modifications allowed.
We’ll remind you about upcoming inspection due dates via email and in the app to help ensure you submit your forms on time and your business doesn’t experience unnecessary down time.
Get a free inspection with AndGo by Goodyear
While hosts are responsible for the cost of inspections, we’ve partnered with AndGo by Goodyear to offer Turo hosts $0 annual inspections,* to help support hosts in their commitment to vehicle safety. We’ve also partnered with YourMechanic to provide discounted on-demand inspection services, up to 20% off for 10 inspections, and Rideshare Mechanic to offer discounted virtual inspections that take just about 15 minutes for hosts on the go. Be sure to visit the deals and discounts page to take advantage of these great deals.**
Tidying up our cleaning and no smoking policies
Guests don’t expect to clean cars before returning them, especially if any dirtiness is the result of normal use, like sand from the beach or snow from the mountains. When guests are abusive or careless with vehicles, however, it can cost hosts valuable time and money.
To continue fostering a balanced marketplace that advocates for both guests and hosts, we’re updating our cleaning and smoking policies with two specific goals in mind:
- Emphasize the respectful use of vehicles and our zero-tolerance no smoking policy.
- Support hosts and their businesses by ensuring Turo is a competitive alternative to rental car companies.
The following changes are effective November 2, 2021.
Updated cleaning policy
- Hosts will be able to charge a $150 violation fee for abusive and irresponsible cleaning incidents. In severe cases, guests may be removed from Turo.
- The “Post-trip cleaning” Extra will no longer be available.
- Hosts will no longer be able to charge a fee for cleaning outside of the $150 violation fee.
- Hosts will be able to contact Customer Support directly via the app to report and charge for cleaning violations. If Customer Support validates the cleaning issue, we’ll add $150 to your earnings and may remove the guest from the Turo community.
- Because hosts will be able to charge for cleaning violations right from the app, cleaning violations will no longer be an option in the reimbursement tool.
Removing some fees for lighter cleaning incidents will help encourage new and repeat business — as well as a marketplace built on mutual respect. We encourage you to consider including these costs in your daily prices instead.
Updated no smoking policy
Guests are strictly prohibited from smoking in vehicles shared on Turo. To keep cars smoke-free, we freshened up this long-standing rule:
- The “smoking with evidence” fee will increase from $150 to $250 to help offset the cost to hosts — and to be clear with guests that smoking of any kind is unacceptable.
- The “odor-only” smoking violation and associated $50 fee will no longer be available.
- Hosts will be able to contact Customer Support directly via the app to report and request charges for smoking violations. If Customer Support validates the smoking issue, we’ll add $250 to your host earnings and may remove the guest from Turo. Check out the screenshot below for more details.
- Because hosts can now seek charges for smoking violations right from the app, smoking violations will no longer be an option in the reimbursement tool.
Eligible All-Star Hosts in the US will be able to get a pack of Turo-designed “no smoking” signs — at no cost — from the Turo shop. It’s a clear, kind, and stylish way to make the point. We’ll let you know when you can begin ordering your signs in October.
We’ll send out a reminder when the policy goes live in November.
Reporting issues right from the app
Starting November 2, 2021, hosts will be able to use the Turo app to report the following issues directly to Customer Support:
- Cleaning violations
- Smoking violations
- Late returns
This new experience makes it easy for you to submit reports quickly while also reducing friction with guests by directing matters to Turo to resolve.
How it works
Select the issue you want to report, then you’ll be able to upload photos and even leave a message to give Customer Support more context about the incident. Customer Support will then review the issue. If the evidence is sufficient to prove a cleaning, smoking, or late return violation, the host will be paid out, and the guest will be charged and potentially removed from Turo depending on the severity of the issue. Please note you’ll only be able to report one issue at a time, so if you have more than one issue to report, you can select “Report another issue”.
Don’t forget, photos are required for all cleaning and smoking issues you report. Take both pre- and post-trip photos within 24 hours to document the incident. As always, Customer Support needs evidence to review and provide fair judgment on issues.
Helping to drive business forward
Consumers expect a safe, comfortable, and consistent experience, and hosts want to make sure their vehicles are treated respectfully so they can run a profitable business. We’re confident these upcoming policy and product changes will help fine tune the marketplace to everyone’s benefit. Guests will have clear expectations and know that you’re committed to keeping your vehicles well maintained, and you’lll encourage repeat business and help continue to build a competitive marketplace that makes everyone’s safety a priority.
* Subject to availability; some vehicles and markets may not be eligible.
** Deals are accessible to hosts in the US only.
