RSS FeedSometimes Your Zipcar Can’t Go Home Again
PQ Zipcar users are in an enviable position when it comes to renting cars; namely we’re surrounded. There are a wide variety of Zipcars all around us, from the fun to drive Mini convertible, to the cargo-hauling Honda Element. When we reserve a Zipcar though, we think about more than how close the car is to us and what model we want to drive. We’ve been Zip/Flex car members long enough to know you also have to think about when you’ll be returning the car; that is, how likely is it that your Zipcar’s street parking space will be empty for you when you get home.
In only the most desperate of times do we ever take either of the cars at 11th & G (pictured above). In our experience, if you take one of those cars with the intent to return anytime other than early morning (photo taken Sunday morning) forget about your space being available. We like to reserve the Honda Civic Hybrid (“Crippen”) at 5th & F for short runs as it is the cheapest car in the fleet (hourly only @ $7.75 per hour) but we never take it if there is an event at the Verizon Center. To do so is to guarantee a stolen parking space. It’s hit or miss with the Element and Mini convertible on 8th ST near the Archives. With those spaces being right in front of Zipcar HQ they’re policed better than others, but we’ve still had experiences with them being taken by others.
The garaged cars are obviously a much safer bet, the Embassy Suites at 10th & NY house many Zipcars for which you’ll never have to worry about losing a space. You do, however, have to add a little additional time to picking up and dropping off the car, as a valet must do that for you. That may add to the cost too, as we always give a tip for that service.
We love the service Zipcar provides, we get the benefits of car ownership without almost any of the downside. But when you’re coming back from a long weekend on the shore or even a short hop to the suburbs, there is little more aggravating than finding out your Zipcar space has been taken.
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The cars at 9th and M are fantastic. Good range of options (I like the Toyota Carolla…somehow always wind up with the Suburu), and the spaces are ALWAYS there because it’s in a parking lot. From PQ, it’s just a smidge of a walk.
I also use the 5th & F Honda and the 11th & G car, and have also returned to occupied spaces. The best thing to do, I’ve found, is to call ZipCar, report the problem, and most importantly, insist that they immediately send someone to ticket and tow the car. I’ve done this on numerous occasions, and have even sat around waiting to make sure it happens. If you explain that you can’t park in your space because it is occupied, they’ll let waive the late fees if you have to wait a few minutes to have the car towed away. Also, it just feels good to see the offending car towed away.
I’ve repeatedly had the same problem with cars illegaly using the designated zipcar spaces at 14th and N. There needs to be a more robust system for ticketing and towing these cars. A few months of highly visible towing on weekends (day and evening) will get the message across.
What do you do when it is taken? Just leave it somewhere else? That wouldn’t be easy in lots of places though.
I got stuck at 11th & G returning a Zipcar to an occupied space so I immediately dialed them. On every occasion that I’ve had a problem they answer the phone immediately and solve the problem pronto. Same thing happened this time. They first said my charges would stop that moment and they would have a tow truck there as fast as they could. As it happened the family arrived 10 minutes later, loaded with Macy’s bags and acting innocent. They drove away before the tow arrived.
Call Zipcar immediately. they are ready to solve your problem.
Yeah I agree with Kathryn. On U street, I tend to go for the cars that are in private lots or behind rowhouses, but when a Zipcar on the street is the only option, the parking space is almost always gone when I return. So I’ve called Zipcar and they’re so fast to tow that car and not charge you for more time. I usually find a place nearby to park and let them know, and then they do a great job of letting the next person who has the car know where it is.
Wow, I’ve used Zipcar for years (Flexcar memeber before the merger) and I call everytime there is someone in my spot. While Zipcar is always fast to answer the phone, they’ve never once offered to tow the offending car away. I’m happy to hear that it works that way for many of you.
Usually I’m instructed to move the car to another legal parking space, tell them where it is, and that they’ll either move it back when the space is available or will tell the next renter where I parked it.
I’ll be curious to hear if they offer the tow truck the next time this happens to me. Thanks for all the comments!
I’ve returned several times to the 5th & F spot and found a car illegally parked in the spot. Zipcar has never been helpful in any way in trying to resolve the issue. The last time was the day of the St. Pat’s Day parade and the car was a PG County Sheriffs van decorated with shamrocks. When I called Zipcar, I was told to drive around until the next person that was scheduled to use the car showed up…that was their solution!
Heh – yeah, I generally found Zipcar service to be either indifferent or rude, which is why I canceled it. When I need a car I go to Union Station or the airport.
So, let me get this correct. You are forced to use the valet at Embassy Suites because (for some reason) there is no ZipCar spots on the street. Yet there are plenty of placed to put them. So, you tip?!!!!! Sorry, you’re a fool. Tipping is not required in this instance.
Perhaps I didn’t explain well in the post Combatjag, being a fool and all. The cars at the Embassy Suites are parked in the garage of the Embassy Suites. So you have to use the valet to get the car from the garage. You are not allowed to walk into their garage to take the Zipcar out yourself.
And you are under no obligation to tip. Just like you’re under no obligation to tip a taxi driver, or a server at a restaurant, or your bartender. I still tip them, but you don’t have to.
It’s interesting to read these comments, it sounds like Zipcar is getting to be more of a hassle to use with time. I used to be a member but usually found that cars were never available when I wanted one. When I did snag a car, I found most of my time was spent looking at my watch to make sure I wasn’t late in returning the car, often times shortening my activities because of variables like traffic.
So, I brought my car to DC, park in a PQ garage, and am so much happier. Whenever I want to play golf, take a weekend road trip or hit a restaurant not on Metro, I just go. The monthly parking fee is far from ideal, but my Zipcar headaches are gone and my DC travel zone has expanded considerably.
I love zipcar. We’ve never really had any problems using it (other than this problem with people taking the spaces illegally). I saw a cop ticketing the an a car illegally parked at the spot in front of Cafe Atlantico the other day, and I thanked him for doing it.
Between metro, zipcar and smartbike, we’ve been able to meet our weekly transportation needs. Since my partner and I only fight when we’re in a car, I can happily say we haven’t owned a car since 1999.
I originally used Flexcar and never had a problem. It wasn’t until Zipcar absorbed Flexcar that the problems started. I think that with a lack of competition , we end up with the indifference and “take it or leave it” attitude from Zipcar. Judging from the difficulty in finding available cars, they aren’t having problems with business so you can expect (still unjustified) a drop off in service.
The two Zipcar spaces at 18th and Kalorama (across the street from the Post Office) are frequently occupied by non-Zipcars. Seems that way most evenings when I walk home from work. Fortunately I haven’t had a problem returning a car there the last few times I’ve used Zipcar. But I’m sure many people have. I think just once or twice I’ve seen those illegally parked cars get ticked. And once, one was towed.
Forgot to add: I think at least with the 18th and Kalorama spots, better marking could help. There is an orange Zipcar pole there. But the “no parking, except for Zipcar” type markings in the spaces themselves have largely faded from existence. So I could sort of see how someone might back into the space thinking it’s legal.
Back when this all started, I was one of the few people that had BOTH Zipcar AND Flexcar… Flexcar’s reservation system was horrible… i mean really really bad… Zipcar has a greater variety of vehicles, trucks, etc.. (I”m not saying Flexcar didn’t, just that Zipcar’s was memorable) I was glad to see Flexcar get gobbled up by Zipcar… FLEXCAR was the horrible service one.. I was read-ended by a cab in a flexcar.. clearly his fault… police came, gave him the ticket, and I still was stuck with the deductable.. dropped ’em pretty quick after that..
Bad news for you Bundy, you’ll be stuck with the deductable with Zipcar too, that’s how it works. You’re always stuck with the deductable.
I liked Flexcar’s reservation system better, but Zipcar by far had the better cars. I was a Flexcar member, Mrs Columbo a Zipcar member. It makes it easier for us in some ways now that there is just one service, no matter which of us reserves the car we can both drive it.
By far the best thing Flexcar had over Zipcar (something I tell Zipcar anytime they ask) is with Flexcar, if you reserved a car but didn’t use all of your time, you could release the remaining time. You still had to pay for your original reservation if no one else took the car, but if someone did reserve the car, you were reimbursed for that time.
Confusing to explain, but it was a great system. If you had reserved a car for 10 hours, but after 4 you were done with it you could release the time. When you did that, anyone searching Flexcar would see that car as avaialble, and if they rented it, that portion of the time was credited back to you. Such a great idea, I hope Zipcar implements that change eventually.
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Not that there is much/any new construction going on, but I always thought it would have been a great idea if condo buildings worked out a deal with Zipcar to have one or two zipcars in each condo parking garage. It would make so much sense.