Turo, an app that lets you rent out your vehicle to others, is hoping to expand to Manitoba.
The app is active in Alberta, Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, British Columbia, Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick, making Manitoba one of just two provinces without approval.
There are many benefits to the service as people’s vehicles aren’t in use 95 per cent of the time, according to vice-president Cedric Mathieu.
“There are 23 million cars in Canada and these cars are really vastly underutilized.
“So our vision is to put them to better use and create a future where there are fewer cars on the road but accessed by more people.”
The company is currently in negotiations with Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) on what it would take to get regulatory approval in the province.
All the cars undergo a safety inspection before they hit the app but insurance is the main challenge.
“In order for a vehicle owner to rent their vehicle to others in Manitoba, they would be required to purchase Basic U-Drive insurance through Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI),” said an MPI spokesperson.
“This coverage includes the standard $750 deductible, $500,000 third-party liability coverage and $70,000 maximum insured value.”
MPI said it has engaged directly with Turo representatives and is working to identify potential products and opportunities going forward.
Mathieu explains how they did it in B.C., which also has a public insurance model.
“The process we followed there has been very similar,” he said. “What’s great, and what I’m happy to report, is that it’s been a very successful experience for everyone.
“We’ve seen a great demand for our cars in B.C. in the past two years that we’ve been operating there.
“So it gives us a lot of confidence in the potential that this platform can have and the potential it will have in Manitoba as well.”
Mathieu said more than 130,000 people have booked a car through Turo across eight provinces.