RelayRides Rents Your Car to Facebook Friends

Peer-to-peer car-sharing service RelayRides is going social, enabling users to rent a car through Facebook by harnessing their social network

In a process the company is calling “Renting Social,” members of RelayRides can now post a Facebook status message that requests to rent a car, broadcasting their need to friends. The idea is simple: One of your buddies may have an extra car, or happen to be out of town when you need some wheels, and could be willing to loan it to you for a little cash.

RelayRides currently performs the same service online between strangers. It allows people with an extra car to offer it as an hourly rental to those located near them. RelayRides acts as a middleman in the transaction (i.e. the renter pays the company, which in turn, pays the car owner), and provides insurance should an accident occur. Read more...