easyCar has launched a car club to bring cheaper and more efficient car hire to consumers and city centres. The easyCar car club operates a staffless site in London where customers' cars are unlocked and immobilised remotely as customers arrive and leave. More easyCar car club sites will now be opened across Europe.
The easyCar car club is available to customers that have already used easyCar at least three times. Customers make their bookings online at www.easyCar.com and when they arrive at the car club site they call the dedicated car club number with their mobile phone and the car is opened remotely, with the keys already in ther car. Upon returning the car to the car club site, the same procedure applies of calling the dedicated telephone number and the car is immobilised.
The advantage to easyCar customers is that they benefit from no transaction fee, a faster and easier car collection and drop-off, and even cheaper prices available on a 24 hour a day basis. easyCar costs are reduced by having a staffless car club with automated procedures. This cost advantage is passed on to customers in the form of cheaper prices.
The advantage to city centres, as the easyCar car club grows, is that car usage can be shared among drivers. easyCar rents cars for as little as an hour and at as short notice as one hour. This reduces the need to drive and park private cars in urban commercial and residential areas as customers are encouraged to use car club vehicles specifically when they need one.
The advantage to easyCar is futher cost reduction. This is the first time that off the shelf, consumer technology has been used for a car club. Standard GSM technology, as used in mobile telephony, powers the easyCar car club which gives the company a huge cost advantage over other car hire companies and other car clubs.
The easyCar car club will expand across Europe and will involve up to half the company's fleet by the end of 2004.