What you need to know
Advances in technology and changes in consumer behavior have produced an emergence of car sharing services and products in select markets in the US. Car sharing participants have different profiles, motivations, and lifestyles than nonusers. Understanding these customers and their motivations will allow car sharing services to expand their customer reach and market share.
Definition
For the purposes of this Report, Mintel has used the following definitions:
Car sharing companies are operations that allow members to rent vehicles for short periods of time, typically by the hour, as opposed to traditional rental models where consumers rent cars by day or week.
Corporate fleet car sharing is when the vehicles are provided by the company for member usage.
Peer-to-peer car sharing is when the vehicle inventory consists of member’s personal cars loaned out to other members.
For the purposes of this Report, Mintel has excluded ride sharing operations. Ride sharing operations are defined as a service that provides a ride to a specific destination on demand. Participants in ride sharing operations do not drive the vehicle. Uber and Lyft are popular ride sharing operations in the US.
