Zipcar

Zipcar provided a fair resolution to an incident that could have been prevented by me, with some foresight and common sense. The totality of the situation was resolved with friendly service and some patience.

I had joined another car share service but it wasn’t very convenient. I had to get on the bus and travel just outside of Downtown Portland or into Portland to get a car and it was expensive at 15.00 an hour. Not fun when I was trying to haul stuff home, a huge hassle.
One day I noticed a Zipcar lived at the end of my street! That’s SW Portland 30^th and Barbur Blvd! I know! Right? AWESOME!!!
From the start my experience has been fantastic! I joined at the office downtown and the gentleman at the reception desk was kind and generous with his time and assistance. I had my card before I left. I love that kind of customer service it makes me giddy! I walked out with a huge smile on my face.
Reserving a car has been very easy and my son and I have more freedom and a chance to get out of the rain from time to time. The cars are well cared for and maintained and the people who share in my area are good about not leaving a mess behind. Any time I have had to call for issues or report a problem the assistance and service has been wonderful.
Recently, more people in my neighborhood have discovered the joy of car share and it became harder to reserve the car. So I sent an email to ZC asking for my area to be evaluated for a second car. A week later I received a call from the manager and we discussed the new trend in my area and a second car is coming! How amazing is that? I have NEVER had a manager call to discuss a request I made. That moment, I became an even bigger fan of ZC!
The more demand for car share in the out lining areas the more zipcar will be able to offer the service. If you haven’t actually checked it out, DO IT! There are many levels of membership and service available to fit any budget and you have the benefit of car ownership without the dent in your wallet! It has been a huge asset to our family it will do the same for yours too!
We are able to do quick trips for groceries or take grandma out to look at Christmas lights. I’ve used it to go to Dr. appointments my son has or getting chores done while he’s in school so I’m not on the bus all day long.
Next week we’re surprising my son with the Polar Express train ride in Hood River! Before ZC I would have not done that because of the expense of renting a car with the expense of gas, mileage and everything else.
With ZC I get 180 miles a day free and a gas card to fill the car. My expense is my monthly membership which goes towards drive time and the time I reserve the car for. AFFORDABLE!
What possibilities will open to you when you join ZIPCAR?
DO IT! DO IT! DO IT!

I was contacted by a local Zipcar representative who wanted to address some of the concerns I expressed on Unilocal!He was very friendly and forthcoming about my issues and the changes Zipcar has recently made.
Apparently the price increases are seasonal and will only last through the summer. I don’t like the idea of seasonal pricing, but at least it’s not permanent.
Also, the representative claimed the addition of cars without a daily rate was mostly new cars and it was not affecting existing vehicles. This isn’t entirely true, however, because many daily rate vehicles in my area have been replaced with cars that do not have a daily rate and are extremely expensive to rent for 24 hour periods.
He also promised to address the cleaning and maintenance issues that seem to be plaguing Zipcars in my area.
Seeing how I appreciate the communication from Zipcar, and the fact that some of my issues are being addressed, I am raising my review to 3-​stars. Clean cars and fair daily/​hourly rates (ie no seasonal pricing) would bring it to 4.

I use Zipcar frequently. I live in the city and don’t own a car, so it can be useful for longer errands.
I have been generally happy with the service– except when people don’t return the vehicle on time– but this latest incident has had me want to cancel my membership.
So I rented my usual car on NW 20^th and Pettygrove… for about 4 hours.
I go to return the car about 15 minutes early and in the «zipcar only» spot there was an old Honda Accord in my spot! I couldn’t park and end my trip.
At first I waited outside for the car’s owner to come back because it was BLARINGLY OBVIOUS that the parking spot was for a zipcar only.
No such luck, so I called zipcar. So I called zipcar’ support and back and forth I was told I either HAD to park it in its assigned spot or find a legal place to park it and alert them to where I was parking it, and I only had 5 minutes left on my reservation and I would be charged if I returned it late.
ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!
First, in the area the zipcar was there is no legal parking anymore unless you have a permit. it’s a popular area. I told the rep that in order to park the car legally it would have me walk 3+ miles home. She said take a taxi.
Wow!
In the end, I didn’t want to incur late return charges so I just parked it on the street in an empty spot and crossed my fingers.
Very bad service when someone screws you over and you still get charged.

Since my previous 2-​star review was based entirely on customer service, it deserves an upgrade based on my most recent experience. After I left the review, I got a call from a representative who was very apologetic and helpful. They issued a refund for service that I was unhappy with and were overall just very nice to deal with. As I said in my original review, it’s certainly not their fault if the car is dirty, and they have no way of knowing who made it that way, my main complaint was really the way it was dealt with. After my most recent interaction I’m a lot happier with the service, although still one star off because I had to be a bit of a squeaky wheel to get there.

I’ve rented Zipcar several times for short shopping trips and trips around town, but I realize now that most of the money I’m paying is for the time the car is parked, and that it’s often cheaper and more convenient to just take a cab or Über for errands, so that’s my plan for the future.
If the time you spend parking is as much or more than the time you spend driving the car, compare the cost to hiring a car. That way you can get the groceries directly to your door instead of having to walk a few blocks carrying sacks. And you’re supporting the local economy instead of shareholders in Texas or wherever.
Also, the cars are rather dirty and it’s clear most renters don’t care about rules, so expect trash on the floor, dog hair, and annoying cosmetic or mechanical issues that may or may not have been reported. If you don’t mind the dirt or don’t have other options, it works great!

Zipcar used to be a phenomenally fantastic service. Now, not so much.
With low rates, a fleet of comfortable cool cars, and great city wide coverage, when Zip first came to Portland it had a lot of great things to bring to casual drivers and a lot more potential. Now, perhaps in relation to Zip’s not so recent merge/​buyout by Avis, the service has declined greatly. It’s a struggle to obtain service from a person, and certainly a person that can tell you or do anything more than the automated service can.
In addition, while Zipcar has added the cargo van, it charges premium rates for this vehicle as well as slipped in its own premium charges with over mileage fees; this in addition to having lower mileage range than the standard daily/​hourly Zipcar rental mentioned in your member agreement.
With Zip’s expanded member base, they’ve also seen fit to provide little amplification of their current fleet, and to this extent have included should we say. less than fun, less than rad vehicles that you’d be better off paying for at a car rental lot? I think so.
Long story short, Zip lacks the convenience of Car2Go while still charging the same rates and more. They’ve slipped in a few rules under the radar that may charge you significantly more than the sticker price, and perhaps I should also mention their mobile app is full of glitches.
I personally would not vouch for this service in its current state. If you really need the convenience of wheels with minimal cost/​hassles, I’d recommend Car2Go.

While my very first experience was great (thank so much for that), my second rental experience just two days later was not. After dropping off my vehicle at its designated location (SE Portland), I returned home to check that this information was newly reflected in the Zipcar reservation system. According to the website, my account reflected an on-​time return and all looked good. Thirty minutes later, however, I received an urgent e-​mail advising that I was being charged a late fee for being 20 minutes past the scheduled return time. I immediately contacted Zipcar to discuss the matter and was told by «Tyreke» that they had no evidence that my Zipcard was scanned at 6:57AM (the actual time at which my vehicle was returned to its designated location). Instead, they show it was scanned at 9:20AM. I was not at all in the vicinity of the vehicle in question at that time. My account was appropriately credited with some indication that the fee would be «waived» as if to suggest that I made a mistake which the company was willing to overlook. This is complete bullshit!!! I’m starting to believe some of the reviews I previously read online from others who have rented from Zipcar. While I’m willing to forgive and move forward with the company, I’m doing so with a healthy dose of skepticism in my head and heart about this company…
*** FOLLOW-​UP ***
I received a call on the same day this post was originally written from the General Manager (Jeremy Nelson) of the Portland Zipcar location. He apologized for the error that occurred during my second rental experience and informed me that there was a mistake made on the part of the agent with whom I had previously spoken. Jeremy was kind and gracious in his approach, even going so far as to offer some suggestions for ways to better my future Zipcar experiences. I went to my mailbox later in the week and found a card thanking me for becoming a Zipcar member, apologizing for the unfortunate experience I had during my second rental, and also found a gift card to a local coffee/​tea shop as a token of appreciation. For that, I say thanks to you Jeremy for demonstrating that customers (and their opinions) still matter. Gestures such as these will keep me around as a Zipcar customer for many years to come…

I’m writing a replacement review for the one I’m not able to delete (thanks, Unilocal,no stars for Unilocal). ZIPCAR went out of their way to make things right after a negative experience in Portland. They closed the location I had such trouble with, called me personally, and sent a nice card. I’m sorry I am not able to delete the old review, ZIPCAR. The car itself was incredible and customer service outstanding. I WOULD use ZIPCAR again.

Zip car is completely HORRID. Zero stars for the worst consumer experience of my life. They put me through unimaginable predicaments. Would Not recommend!

My 1^st time using Zipcar I was hoping to reserve the car a block away from me, but they won’t let you reserve until you get your card and they wont even let you see availability either.
So needless to say I was very disappointed that the car I wanted wasn’t available and no car near me was available, and I infact had to take 2 buses to get to the one that was my only option (according to Zipcar.)
I went and picked up the car (Soul Food) there was stuff left in it from the pervious driver that really kinda surprised me… like a water bottle and hair ties, the seats and floors had grass on them and the dash was very dusty. I’m not sure what I was thinking… I thought maybe a cleanup fairy would come vacuum it and make sure it was all pretty and ready for my zipcar cherry poppin’ moment.
It’s like that moment when you discover that new person your excited about just went on a date right before yours… on the same day.
Sad Panda:(
But the car is new and drives sooooo smooth I quickly forgot what a dirty little slut it was.
I had a great time at Lava Canyons made possible by this car.
I do have to say that, even though I’m only 5’3″ I couldn’t even get into this car without feeling like my head was going to get ripped off from how low it was.
So my plan of action was a running start head first… that got the job done anyhow.
I took the car to the car wash, vacuumed it out, and filled u the tank before I returned it.
Who cleans out these cars anyhow?
A few suggestions I have.
–More vehicles to choose from.
–Have people clean up after themselves (It wasn’t the best first impression, if I hadn’t already paid I might not have put out.“Soul Food” is a dirty bird.
–If I drop off the car early (Which was 6 hours early, don’t charge extra money to change that. Because that car was just sitting there for hours. Someone could have been using it. But there it sat and sat and sat today.(I was just following the sites suggestion of giving yourself extra time, I had no idea how long a drive like that would take me)
–It would be cool if as apart of your site and the cars history we as members could «Tag» the particular vehicles some of the cool places they travel to.(I would have put,
.Helens, Lava Canyon, Ape Caves and Fred Meyers.
That’s all I got. Good day!

I’ve been a member for just a few weeks but I’ve used the service quite a bit in those weeks and love it! I live within 30 seconds of several Zipcars and almost always have a car at my disposal now. The cars are always clean and even have auxillary jacks for iphone.
If nobody has booked the block of time before your reservation you can take the car 14 minutes before your reservation starts. basically 1h14m for about 10 bucks. a seriously great deal. Very pleased with Zipcar so far!

Good old Zipcar! You still get a five-​star rating from me. Yesterday, I had a tremendous amount of activity to accomplish, and as always you were right there at my fingertips (all the way from reserving with my fingertips right at my computer to actually steering the car with my fingertips). Everything got done with a minimum of muss or fuss, so thanks for being right where I need you right when I need you!

It’s zipcar. I love to hate it and hate to love it. But wow I don’t like owning a car. And I also like going to the forest on Sundays and buying weird thrift stuff and THE PACIFIC OCEAN IS SO CLOSE. Also getting people from the airport.
Tips on how to love/​hate zipcar like me.
1. Measure twice, cut once. I have rented the most horrible SUV by accident and felt like a moron running my little errands in Portland.
2. Seriously, be sure you know where you are getting the car from, both from how to approach it walking, and how to return it in the vehicle. Parking can eat up so much of your reservation when you are circling a U-​Park trying to get around tourists and drive correctly on a one-​way.
3. Fill up the gas.
4. If you are driving with another zipcar member, they can drive the car too (check on this one, but I’ve been told as long as you are both zipcar members that the insurance covers each of you).
The customer service can be so good in bad situations. 1. I’ve been in a zipvan with someone who had an inexperienced driver freakout, and they couldn’t get the van safely home (I was waiting for my membership to come through so I couldn’t drive) and they were awesome with him, and sent a tow truck to safely get the cargo van. 2. I could not get one of the push button cars to start one time and had the zipcar person walk me through it at 11pm — turns out if you have an old style card, the radio signal sometimes isn’t strong enough to start the ignition and they reset it for me until it worked.

So my friend in town has both a zipcar account and a car2go account. So from my understanding both are rent as you go, all inclusive (gas, insurance, parking, etc) modes of transportation.
My friend used Zipcar for longer trips because well you can choose what kind of car you want, as opposed to just a smart car. He felt more safe driving on the highways with a full sized sedan.
So why the lower rating? Well with Zipcar you HAVE to come back to where you picked it up. Which isn’t so bad, but sometimes you really don’t want to end up back there. Another thing is they charger you a crazy amount for going over your allocated time. No ifs ands or buts. Sometimes they allow you to extend the rental, but if someone else booked the car or you’re out of luck. It probably is a better business model but as a consumer, fees suck!

I mostly love Zipcar, though the customer service leaves something to be desired.
Like a lot of people in Portland, I don’t have a car. I choose to pay more for rent and live really close in so I can bike, walk, or Trimet pretty much anywhere. But sometimes you need a car for hauling stuff, picking someone up from the airport, client visits for work, etc. Zipcar has been a reliable way to get around for a pretty good price, and I only pay a $ 25/​year membership fee since I am on my company’s account too.
It does get expensive if you need a car for more than one day or to go more than 180 miles (I sometimes have to drive out to the coast for work and it ends up being pretty spendy). I really wish they would have some weekend rentals available for a discounted price — that would really change how I used Zipcar. Also, you probably know this but you can’t make one-​way trips with Zipcar, you have to take the car back to its parking spot.
However, I’ve more than once had issues with cars and service:
— I picked up a car for work once and it was filthy (full of dirt and dog hair) and they gave our company account a credit for it. I picked up a car once on my personal account that was really filthy (animal hair, dirt, fast food cups, etc.) AND had almost an empty tank of gas. I had to first call and report the dirty car and empty gas to Zipcar (which took time), then take it to fill it up (more time), then run home for a blanket to cover the seats because I was supposed to be picking up a friend (even more time), but by the time I had done those things my one hour reservation was almost up. I called to complain about the car’s condition and about wasting my reservation, and they said they were sorry, but I didn’t get a refund or any kind of credit.
— Once I had a car making a really disturbing grinding noise and reported it. They told me that I was probably driving with the parking brake on. Um, I know to take the parking brake off, and maybe you want to pull the car to make sure there isn’t something seriously wrong rather than blaming the customer.
— I forgot my Zipcard at home once and found out they can’t unlock the car for you over the phone without cancelling your Zipcard and issuing a new one. It would have been really simple for them to let me in the car so I could DRIVE home and get the card, but nope, they won’t do that. Seems a little absurd.
— Once I was running late (due to traffic), and it says on the website to call them if that happens. I ended up on hold FOREVER (which would have made me even more late if I had pulled over to make the call), only to be told there was nothing they could do anyway. When I got back to the parking spot (on time, as it turns out), I asked the person who was waiting for the car if Zipcar had called them to tell them I was going to be late. Nope. So I’m really not sure what the point of that policy is — why have people call when they are going to be late if you don’t even notify the next customer?
— No warning before they charge you the annual fee. Would it kill them to send a reminder email? I asked them why they do this and they said «It’s in your service contract». Well Zipcar, just because you CAN do something doesn’t mean you SHOULD. A little warning would be nice.
— It seems like there are fewer cars and less availability than there used to be. For example, they replaced a great Honda CRV in my neighborhood (with a forest pass and snow park pass, too) with a cargo van that is pretty much always there (indicating it doesn’t get used much). It is harder and harder to get a reservation without a lot of notice on a weekend. If more and more people are using Zipcar, why are there fewer cars?
— More cars are being clustered in parking lots rather than parked on the streets than they used to be, which I understand in theory, but in practice means a lot of us no longer have cars within easy walking distance.
— There used to be tons of hybrids, which were cheaper per hour than other cars. Now there are very few hybrids, and all the rates have gone way up. There is one hybrid about a mile and a half from my house that is less expensive, but that’s pretty far to walk when you’re in a hurry, and there is no day rate (most cars have a 12-​hour maximum rate that is cheaper than the hourly rate x 12).
— Some cars have Sno Park passes but no chains. Um… you know you’re required to carry chains in the mountains, right?
Overall, I still like Zipcar and plan to continue using it, but I am concerned that the service might be declining, and it doesn’t meet all of my car rental needs. As someone who REALLY wants to remain car free, I hope they beef up customer service, work on consistent policies, add more cars (and more hybrids), and think about expanding service in the future. I’d also like to see more cars with Sno Park and NW Forest passes, since hiking/​skiing trips are what a lot of people in Portland use Zipcar for.

The management from the Zipcar office in Portland were nice enough to follow up with me after what had happened. They reimbursed my yearly membership, which was nice. I still probably won’t use Zipcar for in town errands, but it’s not bad for day trips.

Zipcar in my opinion has the best customer service, any issues are handled in a professional manner. The cars are always clean and I like that you can choose a vehicle to fit your need. The SUV’s with snow chains, snopark and forest pass permits are a nice touch.

Renting a Zipcar while visiting Portland is the way to go. Forget renting a car at the airport and paying $ 30 – 35 daily parking fees at the hotels. We only needed a car to go outside of Portland and for late night outings.
Although you have to pay a $ 50 annual membership fee, the hourly rate (which starts at about $ 7 depending on what kind of car) is very reasonable. There are many Zipcar locations throughout downtown Portland that you should be able to find one nearby. While we stayed at Paramount Hotel, we visited two different pickup locations. One time, we rented a VW Golf and another time, we had a Subaru Outback. Both were fairly clean inside and it was easy to lock/​unlock the car (either via your membership card or iPhone app). Using the gas card for fill up was convenient as well.

Updating this to three stars since they worked with me to fix the problem, and the people at the Portland office are really helpful. Although I would caution people about the accident policy and the fact that you might need to spend an extra $ 79 a year if you want to avoid what happened to me, I wouldn’t necessarily steer people away from Zipcar. Always take time-​stamped pictures of the vehicle, and if you pass on the extra insurance, always reserve with a credit card that includes rental car insurance. I still think my problem could have been easily prevented, but it pales in comparison to car ownership (even though that doesn’t excuse the billing mistake), and it’s a fine way to get around. Just be vigilant.
— — — — — — — — — — — –
I received a call from Jeremy, the general manager, who acknowledged that Zipcar had handled things poorly. I want to clarify that I’m not blaming any individual person at Zipcar, and my interactions with the people there have generally been positive. I’ve edited out some speculation about the company’s repair policy, and I don’t believe any employee deliberately tried to take advantage of me by putting me on the hook for damage I didn’t cause. (I should also note that Zipcar didn’t ask me to revise the review or even mention it outright, but it became clear that they were calling because they’d read it, so it’s good to know they take these seriously.) Jeremy also noted that the $ 748 and $ 441 were not charged to my card, but the issue is that they would have been had I not questioned the amounts.
This problem could have been avoided if Zipcar had contacted me to confirm my report or compared the report and the estimate before sending me the estimate, and it’s surprising that that’s not company policy. It seems my problem was due to an inadequate policy regarding accident reports/​estimates and perhaps some bad luck, but even though no one intended to treat me poorly, this situation caused me a lot of stress. So, at least until they fix their accident procedures, I still can’t recommend Zipcar.