People are often surprised to discover that I don’t own a car. Well, ever since I moved to Melbourne I’ve never needed one – I’ve always lived in the inner city and worked in the CBD, cycled or caught public transport to get to most destinations, and cabs and rental cars have filled in the gap where necessary.
However, now that I run a small business which sometimes involves hauling a stack of cycling gear from one location to another, it makes sense for me to have a car. Sort of.
I joined up to car-sharing program Flexicar a few months ago (they are in Melbourne and Sydney) and I’ve found it to be a really good service. You may or may not have seen that I’m Flexicar‘s Member of the Month (thank you!) but this post is not sponsored by Flexicar in any way – I genuinely believe it’s a cheap, eco-friendly and convenient way to have access to a car when I need it and it which works well for my needs.
How does Flexicar work? Well, you sign up to a monthly usage plan depending on how much you estimate you’ll have to drive. I have the ‘Biz-Starter’ plan which means I pay $12.95 per hour ($75 daily rate), prepaid monthly credit of $25, 100km of driving and all fuel costs included.
Why do I love it? Firstly, there are quite a few cars within walking distance from my house. The most convenient is literally around the corner (Flexicar‘s slogan is ‘cars around the corner, around the clock’) and seems to have good availability even on weekends. Secondly, there’s no queuing and paperwork like normal car rental. The website is easy to navigate for information and bookings and every car has an easy swipe lock-unlock mechanism to begin and end your booking, so you can just jump in and get going!
The cars are all automatic, so no fiddling with clutches and hill starts, are in good condition from what I’ve seen and there are a good variety of car sizes – I’ve used the small car, the Honda Jazz, to the largest car, the Subaru Forrester. Fuel cards are provided if you need to top up the tank.
Plus I like their attitude – everyone I’ve dealt with at Flexicar has been friendly and helpful and the website has a slightly quirky, irreverent tone. They are keen to support other environmentally friendly businesses and Melbourne events.
It’s great to see that local councils are supporting Flexicar too – clearly it’s a good idea that deserves to spread!
We were with Flexicar for a while when we didn’t have a car and we loved it. My boyfriend even did some cool photos of one of the cars in a graffitied alleyway at night and used the flash to paint light onto it.
They are a really great service and it’s awesome to see more and more Flexicar cars around the parts
Good value for money as well.
Twitter: kittysdrawings
| September 8, 2010, 8:40 am
Great post!!
I also love Flexicar and have to say, if your addicted to the car, then get off it… get out on your bike and become a flexicar member… Spring is upon us and there is no time like the present to start riding around!
Twitter: cclambie
| September 8, 2010, 4:10 pm
Hi Craig
Absolutely agree! I currently use a bike, public transport and Flexicar for my means of transport, and it works out to be economical and eco-friendly solution for me.
Jetsetting Joyce
theres a flexi car on my street… thanks! I’ve been meaning to get off my bum and join… but this came in good timing with Fringe Fesitval Dwellers getting free flexi car membership from now until the end of the festival. Gunna join up now!
Twitter: easyasveganpie
| September 9, 2010, 12:53 pm
Hi Carla
Thanks for letting us know about the deal! I love how Flexicar supports local events like the Fringe Festival. I used it again this weekend to visit a friend on the other side of town, and was once again impressed by the convenience of the service and the friendly service when we had to extend our booking by phone for 30 minutes (Punt Road traffic jam).
Jetsetting Joyce
Thanks for this post (hmm I sound like a spammer), I have wanted to join them for years but never needed to as, like you I can walk/cycle or take PT. Now that I have tonnes of gear to haul, it would be great to join as a biz member. What sucks though is I discovered (upon searching for Flexicar, which is how I found your blog), is they sold themselves to Hertz, who have a similar programme. But ick Hertz, I see it sounding great – “state of the art technology’, international links, etc but I imagine we’ll end up paying more or in some way. plus I liked that they were an independent company. So sick of the big guy swallowing up the competition/little guy and then the PR says how great it is for that small company to join forces and have access to big company’s Z, Y Z but in the end the brand name goes and you end up having a monolith.
Hi Natalie
It’ll be interesting to see whether things change for better or for worse when Hertz complete the buyout. But I think that Flexicar are smarter than that – they know that they have a loyal fan base (people like me) and wouldn’t want to lose that. They also say that prices won’t go up (but of course that can change). I’ve been a member for 4 months now and still loving it!
Jetsetting Joyce
Member for a year.
We like it very much. But a few slightly negative points.
Picked a car yesterday (Artemis, Subaru Forester),, just opposite the new Police Station in North Melbourne. The car has obviously not been vacuum-cleaned for a while, large amount of straw at the front and passenger floors. Why then should we pay 10$ more/day for this car (which is quite old as well, almost 100000km). I did a quick vacuum-cleaning before returning the car. Will not book this car again! In addition, the tank was hardly 1/4 full (:-().
And when we got back, there was a private car parked at the Flexicar park space. This is the third time it happens to me. Went to the Police station to point this out. Luckily, I did not get a ticket for parking without paying. But….the car that was parked on the Flexicar park space did not get any either!!! I hope Flexicar are able to sort those few critics.
Hi Christophe
Thanks for your comment – I’ve passed it onto Flexicar, always good for them to receive feedback. They should hopefully get in touch with you to address your concerns.
Jetsetting Joyce
We’re sorry to hear Artemis wasn’t in the best condition. All our cars are cleaned fortnightly and if members leave in a particular mess, they’re asked to clean it.
We rely on the next member to report any naughty offenders. Parking is an ongoing issue that we raise regularly with local Councils.
If you call to report someone in the park, we can contact the council to send someone to fine them. We can also ensure the flexicar won’t be fined – plus let us know when we need to move it to another spot.
Car sharing relies on all members taking responsibility for their shared cars – some are better about this than others, but it’s a learning process.
We hope more people will continue to try – and successfully and respectfully use – car sharing services like Flexicar, that are a cheap, green and easy alternative to car ownership.
Twitter: flexicar
| November 10, 2010, 2:52 pm