LAXCarShare

I have had numerous problems with them for the past year. The most annoying was filling up the tank with gas, only to find out (TWICE) that the Fleet credit card was being denied due to the account being past due.
Also — I cancelled the account back in June before my yearly renewal. No charges to my account until October 31, when suddenly I got 2 charges — one for the yearly fee and the other was for a new $ 7 monthly charge?
I have called 6 times and left messages — and sent emails through the website, but not one response from them. The last few times I’ve tried to access the site to leave more emails, the site has been down. NOW, I have to go through my bank to fight the charges, which will entail a police report and the inconvenience of getting a new debit card since there doesn’t seem to be a way to unlink it.
I HIGHLY SUGGEST ANYONE STAYS AWAY FROM THIS COMPANY! If you have had issues, I am also considering some sort of legal action. Please let me know if you’d be interested.

The other reviews are right. This is FRAUD !!!
I used to rent cars with LAX Carshare all the time and they used to be good. And then I moved and begged them to close my account. I called and left them all kinds of messages.
They changed their local phone number and the toll free number does not even ring. You leave a message and noone will ever return it.
They CONTINUED TO CHARGE MY CREDIT CARD ON FILE after I sent so many e-​mails and left so many voice messages for them to close my account and stop charging me.
This is FRAUD!!! I contacted my American Express and disputed the charges.
I would like to find out how I report these scammers to official authorities. Someone needs to do something about this. I paid $ 5 per month for a year now all after I requested they close my account. Not only that, but this month they charges $ 5 twice and a $ 15 additional.

FRAUD ALERT! Laxcarshare used to be great, now something big has changed and they are TERRIBLE!
Melissa, who owned the company, used to answer calls personally, and gave really great customer service. I don’t know what happened, but she no longer answers calls or e-​mails at all, ever, and the only person (Terrell) who (rarely) responds to e-​mails gives really suspicious answers to basic questions. Did someone new take over the company and decide to rip people off?
Whatever happened, the people who are running things now are running a sleazy, sleazy operation. I had credit for a cancelled reservation for over $ 150. They refused to refund the money unless I closed my laxcarshare account and returned the key fob to them. So I did, and they *never returned the money*. They won’t answer any calls or e-​mails, and they shut down my online account…
BE WARNED! FRAUD ALERT!

I’ve used other car share companies in the past all have failed in my opinion. LAXCarShare is by far the best. I heard about them in LA Magazine. They are prompt, efficient & have a great customers service department. Customer service was better than expected based on the review I read. They responded to me in a timely manner. The cars were clean & convenient to my location. I’ve saved tons of money this past year. They even gave me a referral credit when I refereed my neighbor. My one suggestion would be is to add electric cars to your fleet & more locations. Aside from that they’re a great service you should use.

I’m pretty sure that Derek from Inglewood (⁴⁄₇ review) works for LAX carshare — you have to respond to customers to actually provide customer service.
Let me begin by saying that I was super gung-​ho about this company. There are 2 LAX cars in my DTLA building and I am devoutly pro carshare. The first few months were great, but shortly after issues began to surface: the gate key wouldn’t work in Pershing Square due to an unpaid bill, check engine lights became ubiquitous regardless of the pick-​up location, the gas card wouldn’t work because — you guessed it – another unpaid bill. When I emailed AND called to get reimbursed for gas paid out of pocket I was met with complete silence. Several months earlier I tried to add my husband to the account. We were given the same paperwork repeatedly, that is if someone actually took the time to respond.
And now, today, the coup de grâce. I tried in desperation to reserve a car due to an emergency — and, say what? My login no longer works?! I email the company asking if they are even in business and to my great surprise I get a response. They tell me I cancelled my account and they received the key fobs. WTF??? I’m starring at my key fob now!
Please, I beg of you, do not use this company. Call up ZipCar, or maybe we’ll get lucky and someday have Car2Go. But unless you’re a total glutton for punishment, or love a good challenge, you’re better off on the Metro… oh, wait.

Do NOT become a member of LAX CarShare. I filled out the paperwork back in November, and after having to follow up with them multiple times, was told in January my application was accepted. Now, it’s March and the membership materials have never been sent! Of course my check was cashed months ago though.
This operation stole my money and has ignored all calls and emails about a refund or a resolution. LAX CarShare is a SCAM! Join Zipcar and don’t look back!
Update: within 48 hours of posting my above review of LAX CarShare, I received an email saying they were going to refund my membership fee. They have since done so. Coincidence? I think not. But to be fair, I wanted to update my review. Still one star, but perhaps this will help their karma.

When I moved to Los Angeles I didn’t have a car and needed a way to get around and also take my CA driving test. LAXCarShare seemed like a good, cheap option. Unfortunately, it turned out to be the most unsatisfactory experience I have ever had as a customer. Their customer service is abysmal. They were quick to get back to me to answer questions I had about signing up with a foreign driver’s license but once I’d paid their $ 25 membership fee the trouble began.
1) On their website they state it will take 14 days to check whether you satisfy their membership requirements, even if you have a foreign driver’s license (as I did). In my case, it took 2 months and a string of e-​mails and phone calls which mostly went unanswered. I should mention that it’s impossible to get a human being on the other end of the line — you have to leave a message and wait for them to call you back «within 48 hours».
2) The first time I reserved a car I noticed the insurance papers were missing and reported this through their member feedback form (as stated in their membership manual). I received no answer. I’d scheduled an appointment to take my CA driving test a week later and expected them to put the papers in the car by then, but when I got there the papers were still missing and I had to reschedule the test. When I left a voicemail about this I got a call back and an e-​mail stating they would have the papers ready for the new appointment. Not only was all of this a huge inconvenience for me, but any other driver using the car might have needed those insurance papers.
3) I sent another e-​mail and left another voicemail two days prior to my new driving test appointment to remind them to leave the insurance papers in the car and asked for confirmation that this had been done. I received confirmation 45 minutes before my driving test. By that point I’d already made other (far more expensive) arrangements for a car since I didn’t want to have to reschedule again.
4) Finally, mid-​February, I filled up the tank and paid for it myself since the gas card didn’t work at the gas station and I was in a hurry. I have yet to be issued a refund for the $ 20 I spent and my e-​mails have once again been ignored.
To say I am dissatisfied with this company would be an understatement. Needless to say, I will not be using them again and strongly discourage anyone else from doing so. I have not used ZipCar but they also operate in Los Angeles and while they’re a little more expensive, I am pretty sure that any other car sharing company is better than LAXCarShare. If I could I would give them 0 stars.

I live car-​free (yeah, I’m an LA freak and I’ll own it) in Downtown LA, and I use a combination of rental cars (usually for daily or longer use and/​or local travel) and car-​sharing programs for business meetings and errands.
In the past I have used Zipcar and Flexcar back when they had cars Downtown — unfortunately Zipcar bought out Flexcar and pulled its fleet out of Downtown — the story I got was that Downtown wasn’t profitable enough so they retreated to only having cars at USC and UCLA. Not helpful for me. I tried it a few times, but a) it’s too far to be convenient and b) I got tired of sharing vehicles with college students who often left them dirty (inside and out), full of trash, not refueled, or in one instance — 6 blocks away from its proper location, just abandoned on a residential street. It coincided with a new job where I had access to fleet vehicles for work, so my need decreased as well. So I just stopped using a car-​sharing service and used daily rental cars instead (thank you to Downtown Enterprise and Downtown Avis for being a breeze.)
So a couple of years after that, I got a voicemail from a company named LAXCarShare, and it sounded like they’d somehow gotten Flexcar’s old customer list. They called me once or twice and left messages; I didn’t actually look into until 6 or more months later. Signup was easy — I think my application and driving record clearance was done in a matter of about 2 days, and I got my key fob within a week (you use the fob to get into the vehicles.) I signed up a few months ago, but just recently got around to using it. My two experiences were quite different.
Experience #1
Went to pick up the car from its Pershing Square location. Arrived at 11:15 to find the car had a (completely) flat tire. Called customer service about 12 times, tried every extension possible and could not reach anyone (including the 24-​hour line to report accidents, etc.) Super frustrating. I had an appointment in West LA at noon. I was f*cked. Finally I went online, cancelled my existing reservation and tried to reserve another vehicle. There were no vehicles available for the time slot I needed. I get back on my phone and make a reservation with Enterprise for noon. Thankfully, that was a breeze, except for the fact that the only vehicle they had needed refueling. LAXCarShare calls me back right after I finished renting the Enterprise vehicle. I explain I’ve already dealt with it and ask them to just credit my account and cut the call as short as I can — I gotta go. In the end, I make it to West LA an hour late. Not good — I look very unprofessional.
I now have a 1 – 1.5 star opinion of this new service, but I figure I owe them another shot. I log in to make another reservation, and I see my account wasn’t fully/​properly credited, so I email their customer service, explaining the situation the week before.
Now this is where it all takes a huge turn for the better. Their Director of Operations emails me back within 20 minutes to apologize, and tells me my account will be fully credited, plus two free hours for my inconvenience. This makes a great impression — anyone can make a mistake, but it takes someone good to fix it and make it right.
Experience #2
My second reservation (8^th & Olive) goes off without a hitch. Car is operable :) and clean and fueled, everything is where it’s supposed to be.
So for now, LAXCarShare gets 4 stars. If the reliability and excellent customer service continue (and if someone answers the phone the next time I’ve got an emergency situation like a non-​working car, then I’ll update my review and bump it to 5 stars!