Lance C. is a software engineer who lives in the West Loop neighborhood of Chicago. He’s never driven much. Before the coronavirus pandemic, he would bike or take public transit to work. Now, because of COVID-19, he’s driving even less because he’s working from home. He keeps a car for the weekends for weekend getaways, his soccer matches, and errands. He owns three BMWs that he lists on the car-sharing marketplace Turo.
How long have you been a Metromile customer?
I joined Metromile around the beginning of 2020. As soon as Turo notified hosts about the partnership with Metromile, I jumped on it. Insurance can get expensive!
I had been looking for a pay per mile, low-use car insurance for the last two years. I couldn’t find one that fit my situation because other insurers with a pay per mile model would have still charged me for miles driven by Turo guests. That didn’t work because most of the miles being put on my cars are from my Turo guests, not me. Prior to Metromile, I was basically paying double for car insurance — for cars I wasn’t driving.
How do you like your Metromile insurance?
I love my Metromile insurance! It costs me about $20 a car each month. It’s the best thing there is! It’s cut my bill at least in half. It’s just great, and I saved so much money. Even if there are no guests, Metromile provides huge savings when the cars aren’t making money for me on Turo.
The Metromile app is also awesome. I love to see where my cars are parked. I have three cars on the Turo platform, so it’s great to know where the Turo guests park them. I also love the street-sweeping alerts and near real-time billing.
I’d love to see a car unlocking and locking feature, and I’d also like to see an integration that makes it easier and more seamless for Turo guests to share their gas and mileage. Also, add renters insurance, so I can dump my other insurer and bundle with Metromile!
With many people still staying close to home during COVID-19, what changes have you seen with trips taken by Turo guests?
I’m starting to see an uptick in rentals again this summer. People are still renting my cars to run errands like big grocery runs, but they are also driving to visit their families out of town.
Cities like Chicago are conducive to Metromile, and I think there will always be a need for pay-per-mile car insurance. It can take a long time to find parking, so many people are like me: The times you use your car are few and far between.