Please note
This page explains briefly the story of Leih dir mein Auto and the work that we did so far to make this a reality. If you want to know more details please reach out and I will guide you through a more comprehensive process.
Situation
It was 2021, and I asked my friend Stephan if I could borrow his car. We knew that the insurance aspect is critical in Germany, so Stephan decided to call his insurance company. After a short back-and-forth, it became clear: Lending the car wasn't straightforward, and there was a risk that Stephan's insurance costs would rise if there were an accident. This could strain our friendship. At that moment, we looked at each other and realized that if we were facing this problem, millions of others must be experiencing the same issue.
Solution
We knew that the solution had to be super simple. Not just for the benefit of our users, also for our own ease of implementation. A minimum set of features would suffice, and our core solution would actually be the insurance product.
Challenges
● Talk to people to validate the problem
● Find an insurance partner
● Register the Company
● Sort out legal documents & data protection
● Design and build the first version of the product
● Run a pilot program
● Get people to sign up and convert into customers
● Sell the first trip through our service
Result
Fast forward to 2023. We launched our Carsharing service "Leih dir mein Auto" in Germany. This service allows to share private cars amongst friends and neighbours in a safe and secure way. Without risking the friendship and the important No-claims bonus.
Germany has 48 Million privately owned cars. Which can now be offered to friends and neighbours as a Carsharing option through Leih dir mein Auto.
Team*
Stephan Kochen – Role: Everything with focus on Business Design
Daniel Seebach – Role: Everything with focus on Programming
Simon Stellwag – Role: Everything with focus on Product
*Everything for Leih dir mein Auto is made by ourselves and the business is 100% bootstrapped.
Next Steps
● Stabilizing the Company
● Improving the product according to customer needs
● Figuring out Marketing
3 important points of Leih dir mein Auto
1. The Emotion of helping
Friends or Neighbours are naturally helping each other out. This is based on our DNA as humans, because back in the days we could just survive as a tribe or community.
We believe that this is the "real" Sharing Economy. And not a financial transaction between strangers, as we know from other carsharing services and business models invented in the silicon valley.
2. The desired Item and the problem
Several statistics are saying that private cars are resting in the parking lots for up to 23 hours per day. They are only used for 45 minutes per day on average.*
Unfortunately the insurance is the biggest show stopper when it comes to sharing private cars with friends and neighbours. Therefore the solution is not only a digital product but also a good insurance product that is offered through our service.
3. The solution for 1. and 2.
Surveys* have shown that people are willing to share their private cars with people whom they know. Friends, Friends of Friends, Family and Neighbours.
Thats exactly what people can do through Leih dir mein Auto. We call this "carsharing communities".
The most important part of Leih dir mein Auto is the on demand insurance product which we are offering through our digital solution. It gives people peace when helping each other out. So that their friendship and no claims bonus are protected.
