Mileage, fuel and cleaning

Set a mileage allowance on the listing, hand the car over with a full tank and expect it back full, and record both on the handover photos.

Three small things cause most of the friction at the end of a trip. All three are settled in advance, on the listing.

Mileage

Set an allowance per day on the listing, and a rate for anything beyond it. A guest can see both before booking, so an overage at the end is a calculation rather than a surprise. If you would rather not count, offer unlimited mileage and price the car accordingly — it is a real selling point.

Fuel and charging

The workable convention is full to full: hand it over full, ask for it back full. For an electric car, state a percentage instead, and say in the listing whether a cable is included and which one.

Cleaning

Hand the car over clean. Normal use is expected back — mud on the mats after a week away is not a cleaning charge. Smoke, pet hair or a spill that needs professional cleaning is, and the listing should say so plainly.

Record it at handover

Photograph the odometer and the fuel gauge at the start and end of every trip, with the car in the frame. That single habit resolves nearly every dispute in this article before it becomes one.

Charges after the fact go through the platform, not between you and the guest directly. Report it on the booking with the photos, and the amount reaches you on the next payout.