UAE set to have first P2P vehicle-sharing platform

Urent, an online platform that is set to revolutionise the UAE vehicle rental industry by offering the first-ever peer-to-peer vehicle-sharing platform in the region, creating a whole community that focuses on building trust between two people, one being the private vehicle owner, the other being the renter.
It will also provide residents and citizens with the right to rent vehicles of up to six categories.
Omar Al Ashi, CEO and founder of Urent, announced a partnership with Seed Group, an association of diversified companies owned by the Private Office of Sheikh Saeed bin Ahmed Al Maktoum, to launch the platform and make it the first of its kind to be licenced by the Roads and Transport Authority.
Al Ashi came up with the concept that will not only solve many problems that currently exist in traditional rental firms, but also ultimately provide opportunities for people to make good use of their vehicles as well as for renters to have easier access to rentals and a more reliable mode of transportation.
"With the support of The Private Office of Sheikh Saeed bin Ahmed Al Maktoum and Hisham Al Gurg, Urent will set an example for the people of the Mena region and highlight the promising future of the sharing economy and, more importantly, the importance of using existing vehicles," said Al Ashi.
In selecting the partner to lock the launch and licensing of the app, he placed special emphasis on and the high-impact interplay between its partner's strong link connections and support for business development.
Al Gurg, who is CEO of Seed Group and The Private Office of Sheikh Saeed bin Ahmed Al Maktoum and an automobile enthusiast himself, has been studying the peer-to-peer rental vehicle market for quite a while, and when approached by the Urent concept, he saw that it fits perfectly with their strategy.
"Urent has come in the right place at the right time," said Al Gurg. "Omar provided us with an excellent presentation on how Urent could make full use of its unique business model as being the region's first Airbnb for vehicles. Unlike traditional rental companies adopting the same logistics process, Urent at this point is not going down that road. They are making their own path and we are strongly convinced of its market potential. We are proud to support this leader in its category."
Urent launched its fully-operating website recently to introduce the concept to the UAE and onboard as many users a possible. The official launch on all platforms will take place on June 29.
- business@khaleejtimes.com