DriveItAway has adapted its app-based platform to meet the challenges car dealers and consumers face in the current coronavirus environment. The app now allows for a fully remote payment and signing of the rental contract, so no in-person contact is needed.
“What we found is that there is still a certain level of replacement vehicle demand out there from consumers whose needs are not being met, particularly in ‘stay at home’ states, yet both consumers and dealers want to comply with the social distancing laws and not endanger their health,” John F. Possumato, founder/CEO of DriveItAway, said in a statement. “Nor during these uncertain times, do folks want to jeopardize their financial health, in laying out a large amount of cash or making a long term financial commitment.”
The program offers a fully in-app rental with an option to purchase, where any dealer can offer a customer the ability to choose any used vehicle in inventory, and rent it with a purchase option with some or all of the rental payment applied towards the agreed upon purchase price of the vehicle, and have it delivered to the customer’s home, with all contracting, payment, and terms inside the app.
For a consumer, the proprietary DriveItAway program is as follows:
- Pick the vehicle desired out any dealer’s used car inventory online and call, email, or text the dealer to establish the all in one monthly fee (which includes insurance and maintenance), and the sale price option, with part of this monthly payment applied and deducted from the sale price, if the purchase option is exercised in the future.
- The vehicle and monthly rental rate, amount of the rental applied in credit towards the purchase (should the renter want to purchase), and terms, are placed on the DriveItAway app, where the renter can digitally consummate all rental terms and payment.
- The clean, disinfected vehicle is delivered to the customer’s door — from a distance, the delivery coordinator will validate identity (with the license information in the app), and confirm a vehicle condition walk around….that’s it, no paperwork, no direct contact, no need for close interaction.