An online car-sharing platform seeking to attract former Zipcar users is expanding its presence in London, promoting peer-to-peer vehicle hire as a way for private owners to generate regular income from cars that would otherwise sit idle.

Turo, a US-based start-up operating in the UK since 2018, says more than 2,000 London motorists are already listing vehicles on its platform. Unlike Zipcar, which withdrew from the capital at the end of December, Turo does not own or lease its own fleet, instead facilitating short-term rentals between private individuals.

The company’s UK managing director, Rory Brimmer, said the model avoided the capital costs associated with fleet ownership. Speaking to The Evening Standard, he said vehicles were “idle most of the time” and represented “an asset… that can be generating income”.

Under Turo’s pricing structure, hosts set availability while prices fluctuate according to demand and seasonality. The platform deducts between 25% and 35% of the hire fee, depending on the insurance and service package chosen. Turo says the average host earns around £400 a month, though returns vary by vehicle type and utilisation.

Mr Brimmer, who rents out his own Audi Q3, told The Evening Standard that he uses the platform “around half the time”, generating close to £800 a month. He said insurance cover and licence checks were central to encouraging participation, noting that the company was integrated with DVLA systems to verify drivers.

Following Zipcar’s exit, Turo launched a £120,000 advertising campaign across the Tube and London Overground. Mr Brimmer said the company moved quickly after the announcement, describing the gap in the market as “an opportunity” to capture displaced demand.

Zipcar earlier said its decision to exit the UK market by end of 2025 reflects deteriorating financial performance and rising operating costs that have made the business model less viable. In its accounts, the UK arm reported widening losses after revenue fell, a trend partly attributed to decreasing use and higher costs for energy, insurance and fleet upkeep. The introduction of new charges in London – including the extension of the congestion charge to electric vehicles – is understood to have increased daily operating costs for a fleet with a significant proportion of EVs, further squeezing margins. In a customer communication, UK general manager James Taylor announced a formal consultation on ceasing operations, noting it would not be possible to take new bookings beyond 31 December as the company assesses the future of the business.

Policy interest in car-sharing remains strong in London, where car ownership is lower than the national average. Transport strategies under Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan aim to reduce the number of privately owned cars, while several boroughs have called for greater support for car clubs and shared mobility schemes.

The UK expansion comes as Turo reassesses its capital markets strategy in the United States. According to TechCrunch, the company has withdrawn plans for a New York Stock Exchange listing, ending a three-year effort to pursue an initial public offering.

In a statement reported by TechCrunch, chief executive Andre Haddad said the board had decided “now is not the right time” to go public, citing changing market conditions. He said remaining private would allow Turo to continue investing in the business.

TechCrunch reported that Turo’s revenue grew from $150m in 2020 to $958m in 2024, despite a slowdown in growth and the recent closure of US rival Getaround. As of September 2024, the company reported 150,000 active hosts globally, 350,000 vehicle listings and 3.5 million active guests.

For UK and EU readers, the decision highlights the contrast between Turo’s capital-light marketplace model and the balance-sheet-heavy approach of traditional car clubs, a distinction that has become more prominent as funding conditions tighten and operators reassess the economics of shared mobility.