f.a.q.
What is car sharing?
What can be gained by sharing a car?
What does it cost?
How do I join in?
Will I find a match?
Who can see my email address?
Does it cost anything to join?
What are the insurance implications of car sharing?
Can I change my login details/password?
How do I contact the driver / passenger?
What happens if my lift does not turn up?
What about safety?
Can I just opt to share with someone of the same sex?
Where should I arrange to meet my travelling companions?
How do I cancel my membership?
How do I edit my e-mail address, password etc?
What if my circumstances change and I need a new car share?
What is car sharing?
Car sharing is when two or more people share a car and travel together. It allows people to benefit from the convenience of the car, whilst alleviating the associated problems of congestion and pollution. It also allows people to share the costs of fuel and parking.
What can be gained by sharing a car?
The UK has the worst congestion, longest commuting time, second highest road utilisation
and highest car ownership in the EU.
The UK's traffic situation has led to significant social, economic and environmental
costs:
-
Traffic jams cost the economy £5 billion every year in lost productivity
- There are 10 million empty seats on the road every day
- 29% of children travel to school by car
Sharing a car:
- Reduces parking problems
- Undercuts the cost of nearly all other forms of transport
- Reduces the need for a private car
- Provides a real solution to the lack of public transport in rural areas
- Facilitates the integration of public and private transport
- Reduces congestion and pollution
- Widens the recruitment catchment areas for businesses
- Is a way of meeting new, like-minded people
- Reduces the costs of travelling by car.
What does it cost?
Most car-sharers tend to simply take it in turns to drive to work. Should you need to come to another arrangement CarshareGM suggests that passengers pay the driver 15-20p per mile. Alternatively drivers and passengers can split the cost of petrol. Please note that drivers should not make a profit from car-sharing as this can invalidate their insurance. As a basic figure we advise that drivers receive no more than 30p per mile from passengers, but if you have any concerns please contact your insurance company directly.
How can I join in?
If your organisation is a member of the scheme, simply, go to the registration page and choose your employer
from the drop down list.
Fill in your personal details and the details of your journey to work. You will be sent a confirmation email. When
you receive it, simply click on the link contained within it to confirm your email
address and we will do the rest for you! Your local coordinator will suggest
any suitable matches for you based on the information you submitted, and will email
them to you.
You can then contact any suitable travelling companions and arrange to meet them at a place that suits you both. Make sure you both bring I.D. so you both know you're meeting the right person.
Will I find a match?
The more people that use this site, the better the chances of suitable matches being
found! So remember to tell your colleagues about our site. If, however, you're having
difficulty in finding a match, we suggest that you look for a travelling companion
for part of your journey, and do the rest on public transport.
Who can see my email address?
We will only share your email address with employees from your workplace who we
think are suitable matches based on the information you give us.
Does it cost anything to join?
If your organisation is a member then it is free to join the scheme. However, it is suggested that drivers and passengers split the cost of each journey, or passengers can pay 15-20p per mile. Drivers must not use car-sharing as a means of making a profit.
What are the insurance implications of car sharing?
The Association of British Insurers clearly states that car-sharing won't affect
the insurance of their members so long as a profit isn't made:
"Giving Lifts - All ABI motor insurers have agreed that if your passengers contribute
towards your running costs your insurance cover will not be affected, as long as
lifts are given in a vehicle seating eight passengers or less. This agreement does
not apply if you make a profit from payments received or if carrying passengers
is your business." (Source: ABI website, 2005)
The ABI represents around 400 companies, transacting 94% of the business of UK insurance
companies. Drivers should check with their insurance company as terms and conditions
may vary between insurance providers over time.
Can I change my login details/password?
You select your own password when you register. If you would like
to change your password you can login and go to the My Account page to change it.
How do I contact the driver / passenger?
Once you have registered, your local coordinator will look for matches for you
and will email any found to you.
Having selected a suitable travelling match, you should make contact (to agree a time and place to meet) using their e-mail address. We do not recommend that you exchange home addresses (for security reasons), and we advise all members to meet in public locations such as a train station or bus station, which are easy to get to and away from, should the lift fail.
What happens if my lift does not turn up?
CarshareGM only suggests suitable travelling companions and we cannot be held responsible for any journeys that don't work out as planned. Similarly, the drivers and passengers who register their journeys with us are under no legal obligation to their travelling companions or to CarshareGM to make any journeys.
However, we hope that if circumstances alter and journeys can't be made, those who may be affected are contacted out of respect and informed. It is also a good idea to meet where public transport is available, so that other options are possible should plans change.
What about safety?
CarshareGM takes all possible steps to ensure your confidentiality is maintained.
Whilst car sharing, it is up to the individual to ensure their own safety. However, following the simple security measures outlined below could assist you to car share as safely as possible:
- Don’t exchange home addresses with your carshare companion before you meet them
- Meet in a public place
- Tell somebody you trust who you will be travelling with, when and where you are going
- Make sure that you show each other a form of photo ID such as your work ID badge: this ensures you are both talking to the right person and is reassuring for both of you
- You do not have to go ahead with any car share journey. If you have any doubts about your travelling companion, for any reason, you should avoid travelling with them.
Can I just opt to share with someone of the same sex?
If you have any special requirements such as single sex sharing or smoking preference, please state this in the comments box when registering. Your local coordinator will take this into account when finding a match for you.
Where should I arrange to meet my travelling companions?
We recommend that you meet your travelling companions at a public place, close to public transport networks if possible so that alternative transport options are available should the lift fall through. We advise members not to meet at a home address for security reasons.
How do I cancel my membership?
To cancel your membership, please login and go to the My Account page. From there you will be able to close your account. Once you have done so your personal information including your email address will be deleted from the database.
How do I edit my personal details, password etc?
To edit any of your personal or journey details or change your password,
login and select My Account. You can amend your details as
necessary, and the records in our database will be updated automatically.
What if my circumstances change and I need a new car share?
If you are no longer sharing you can login and cancel the share from the database as you do so you can optionally request that the coordinator searches for a new match for you.
Question not answered above? Don't worry, you can contact your local coordinator
and we'll get right back to you.