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The easiest way to rent a car in London

London is famous for its multiple transportation options and I have to agree: they feel limitless! But when last week I needed to change a flat and move over 8 different luggage items singlehandedly, I realised that what I know doesn’t seem to cut it in the real world. I needed to rent a car in London, I needed it on a Sunday, and I did not want to travel much to get it. My weapon of choice? Drivy!

Why did I need to rent a car in London on a Sunday?

For just 3 months in London I had somehow managed to accumulate four times the amount of luggage I modestly arrived with. There was no chance of me doing four 2-hour trips (one hour each direction) with 2 pieces of luggage. And Uber, my second best choice, suddenly decided that a trip of 6 miles is going to cost me 34 GBP. Dear Uber, thanks, but hell no! And as I was looking through my options with almost no hope left I remembered there was an app on my phone for cases just like this one.

So, what is Drivy?

It is literally a version of AirBnB for cars. People rent out there vehicles through an app getting some extra cash towards the lease, and people like me, who can’t really plan ahead well can rent them to save themselves some troubles. 

And how exactly do you rent a car in London through Drivy?

Just so you can imagine it I will work with a randomly selected character here. So Pedro (fictional character) decides to rent out his car. He submits it to the app, gets approved and his listing is already visible. When Pedro parks his car he marks the location on the app.

When you start searching for a vehicle in your area, Pedro’s car pops up as a good option based on the area you’re in (or the one you’re searching in). You decide to book the car and go ahead through the app. From there and on the steps are simple:

  1. When time comes for your rental to begin, you go and find Pedro’s car (information about the license plate number will be available once you’ve rented out the car);
  2. When you’ve found the car you’ll select the “Begin Rental” in the app (not quite sure about the button text but it’s something like this). 
  3. The app will prompt you to take pictures of the car from several different angles. It’s absolutely crucial that you diligently take each photo ensuring the best lighting conditions possible, so each mark or scratch on the car is visible on the photos;
  4. Once you’ve taken the photo the app will unlock the car for you;
  5. Find the key and submit the internal inspection for the car – if there’s anything wrong with the interior of the car this will be the time to note it down;
  6. Ensure fuel is to the level the app claims it is and take off.

What do you need to know when using Drivy?

There are several little details which are important when using Drivy. Here’s the list of things that come to mind:

  • You need a credit card: from what I’ve seen on Drivy’s terms and conditions debit card won’t do;
  • You need to have 250 GBP available + the amount the rent will cost you on the card: the deposit of 250 GBP will be blocked on your account for 7 days after the rental is over (I personally had no problems with the refund of my deposit);
  • There’s no charge for the first 150 miles, but after that every mile costs you something like 0,10 GBP. If you plan on going for a long journey it might be a better solution to look into regular car rental companies but do check this quick guide before that;
  • You will (obviously) need to have a driver’s license valid in the UK;
  • Drivy’s terms & conditions also mention that you need to be a resident in the UK. I don’t have an experience with the contrary, so do come back and leave a comment below if you do;
  • You’re supposed to stay within the country.

Want 20 GBP off from your first booking?

If you’ve found out about Drivy from this article and would like to get a 20 GBP discount from your first booking, use this link to get to the site. They’ll also reward us which will give us the opportunity to explore more places and publish stories. Everybody wins 🙂

By Nina Alexander

Nina is the big sister. She's a marketing professional by day, traveler by heart, tech geek, bookworm, beer lover and an amateur photographer. Her motto is Friedrich Nietzsche's famous quote "And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music."

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