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Getaround Slams Brakes on U.S. Car Sharing, Leaving Customers Scrambling
Getaround abruptly shutdown on Wednesday, Feb. 12, canceling existing and future rentals.
Sally French is co-host of the Smart Travel podcast and a writer on NerdWallet's travel team. Before joining NerdWallet as a travel rewards expert in 2020, she wrote about travel and credit cards for The New York Times and its sibling site, Wirecutter.
Outside of work, she loves fitness, and she competes in both powerlifting and weightlifting (she can deadlift more than triple bodyweight). Naturally, her travels always involve a fitness component, including a week of cycling up the coastline of Vietnam and a camping trip to the Arctic Circle, where she biked over the sea ice. Other adventures have included hiking 25 miles in one day through Italy's Cinque Terre and climbing the 1,260 steps to Tiger Cave Temple in Krabi, Thailand.
Claire Tsosie is a managing editor for the Travel Rewards team at NerdWallet. She started her career on the credit cards team as a writer, then worked as an editor on New Markets. Her work has been featured by Forbes, USA Today and The Associated Press.
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Customers with car rentals booked through Getaround are in for some frustrating news: The peer-to-peer car-sharing company abruptly announced on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, that it is shutting down its U.S. operations, effective immediately. That means all future rentals have been canceled, leaving those with upcoming travel plans scrambling to find alternative arrangements.
Things are even more complicated for current renters, who have only until the end of the day to return their vehicles — or risk being personally held liable for any damages.
Why is Getaround shutting down?
In a statement, Getaround cited an “ongoing lack of liquidity” as the primary reason for its decision to cease U.S. operations. In short, the company ran out of money.
Though its U.S. presence struggled to be financially viable, the company says it will continue growing in European markets. Getaround, which claims to be the leading car-sharing platform in Europe, will continue to operate in France, Norway, Spain, Germany, Belgium and Austria.
What the Getaround news means for renters and hosts
The Getaround app from Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, shows no rentals available. (Screenshot by Sally French)
Renters should return cars ASAP. If you don’t return them by the end of day on Feb. 12, you could risk being held personally liable for any damages. In an email sent out to customers, the company warned that after Wednesday, it may no longer be able to provide insurance for vehicles, and any damages incurred will be the responsibility of the renter.
Future rentals are canceled. If you booked a Getaround car for a future date, you’ll have to make other plans. At this point, it’s unclear how the company is handling refunds. The company says that “any outstanding claims or balances will be handled through the wind-down process.”
Hosts can no longer use the platform to rent out cars. Some Getaround hosts have made renting out vehicles on Getaround a key side hustle — and some have even used it as their own small business, purchasing a fleet of vehicles to rent out on the platform. Since renters are no longer able to book, that income stream has been eliminated.
The app is still accessible in the U.S., but rental listings have been removed. Customers who log onto the app today can still view their ride history. But the app doesn’t list any cars available for rent in the U.S.
Some details remain unclear
At this point, there’s still a lot we don’t know about Getaround’s shutdown. It’s unclear how final payments to hosts will be handled, or when renters will get refunded. It’s also unclear how insurance claims for incidents that occurred before the shutdown might be handled. Getaround hasn’t yet responded to a request for comment.
Alternatives to Getaround
While Getaround is no longer an option in the U.S., other peer-to-peer car-sharing services still exist. Whether you need a car to rent (or you want to post your car for rent) here are some alternatives to consider:
Turo: Of all the peer-to-peer car rental services, Turo operates most similarly to Getaround, allowing customers to rent vehicles directly from local hosts.
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