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Typically the minimum rental age is 21 but I see in your FAQ it's actually 25 for Carve[1]. I feel like there is a huge market for ages <21 as that would be th
by nexuist 7y ago
Typically the minimum rental age is 21 but I see in your FAQ it's actually 25 for Carve[1].
I feel like there is a huge market for ages <21 as that would be the time that new adults would need a car and would not necessarily accept the responsibility of paying monthly loans or have access to credit that would allow them to buy one outright. They would have the capacity to have enough money saved to rent a car for a few days or weeks, but they are turned away by every player in the space.
I guess this is more of a general question than pointed at you, but since you guys have researched the market maybe you'd be equipped to answer it. How come nobody offers rentals to <21 drivers? Furthermore, a question for Carve specifically, why 25 instead of 21? Would dealerships not bite even though the common minimum age for rentals is 21?
I understand that accident rates among this demographic are incredibly high and that would complicate your liability. What I don't get is why seemingly nobody in the car rental business wants to service this market - couldn't you just offer beaters or end-of-life cars to high risk drivers? Nobody needs a brand new Nissan Murano to drive 70 miles upstate. You can do the same drive in a 25 year old Corolla. I suppose I am biased because I am <21 myself (20), but I also own my car outright so I wouldn't be in the target market for this.
[1] https://help.drivecarve.com/hc/en-us/articles/360031105291-How-old-do-I-have-to-be-to-make-a-reservation-Are-there-any-other-requirements-I-need-to-meet- https://help.drivecarve.com/hc/en-us/articles/360031105291-H...
- amosgewirtz 7y agoWe'd love to serve customers younger than 25, and the only reason we don't is because insurance becomes prohibitively expensive. As a young company with very limited loss data, it was tough to get a carrier to underwrite a policy that doesn't have fairly strict driver eligibility requirements. That being said, we're currently negotiating with a different carrier and will hopefully be able to rent to people 22 and up within the next 6 weeks.
- nexuist 7y agoThank you for the quick response. I wish you the best of luck!
- toomuchtodo 7y ago> I feel like there is a huge market for ages <21 > I understand that accident rates among this demographic are incredibly high and that would complicate your liability. As you mention, the liability cost is simply very high for drivers under the age of 25 (prefrontal cortex is not yet fully developed), which is why most rental car companies do not service that age cohort.