Acting Director Of Philly Car Share Denies Repos, Still Loves You And Thinks You’re Awesome
Following up on our post on Monday about Philly Car Share’s season in hell, we were lucky enough to get PCS acting executive director and co-founder Eli Massar on the phone at the end of the day yesterday. Massar assumed his post back in September, when a shakeup between fellow PCS co-founders Tanya Seaman and Clayton Lane dotted the i’s and crossed the t’s on a company then officially in freefall. Since then, Massar, previously a board member, has had his work cut out for him: Between an economy in crisis (which in actuality should produce a boom in the car-sharing business), competition from other car-sharing companies like Zipcar (who snatched a lucrative contract for the City of Philadelphia from PCS late last year) and the in-house mess he inherited from Seaman and Lane, it’s been a rough ride. But it must be said: When we talked with Massar yesterday, he was resolutely upbeat, still singing PCS’s praises any chance he got (and believe us, he found a way to make every question a chance to do that). But to his credit, Massar has his eyes wide open.
“There’s nothing fun about delivering news that many of our members consider bad news,” said Massar, quickly shifting to PCS’s admittedly impressive silver lining: “But there’s something very satisfying about recognizing the success of being the largest car share in the country and making changes consistent with the sustainabiliy of the company in the long run — as well as that of the city we serve.” And as for the rumor that Philly Car Share had as many as 30 cars repossessed off the street over the weekend? Massar categorically denies it. “Philly Car Share has reduced its fleet somewhat over the last six months,” he says, citing the economy as a deciding factor in pulling some of PCS’s luxury models over that period, “but nothing’s been repossessed.” (Representatives from McMahon Leasing, PCS’s principal leasing agent, also deny that any cars were repo’d over the weekend.)
As for the much-debated and somewhat rushed rate change for existing PCS members over the weekend, Massar was forthcoming: “There are some people who are leaving [Philly Car Share],” he says, “but proportionate to the overall size of the care sharing community, it’s not a lot.” Asked for a number of customers who’ve jumped ship in the past few days, Massar said he wouldn’t know for a week or so. But as opposed to the impression that the rate change was a desperate grab for much-needed cash, Massar views the move completely differently. “This is Philly Car Share simplifying the model,” he said. But he was loath to cry foul at media coverage and online forums where PCS’s recent troubles have been discussed. “I don’t think the company has been portrayed negatively,” he said. ” When you have 30,000 members, you can’t satisfy everyone. It’s been fair — and educational to us.”
April 29th, 2009 at 4:19 pm
Calling shenanigans on this one; repos or no, giving customers a 6 day window to close their accounts or be opted into a monthly charge goes beyond the pale for awful customer service and is completely unacceptable. I’m not sure what the TOS for PCS are, but I have some doubts on how enthusiastically the credit card companies and the BBB would look at those charges. I may or may not have cancelled my subscription because of the monthly charge, but because of the lack of notice I cancelled in disgust. I’ve signed up for Zipcar in the mean time while I way my options. Fail.
April 29th, 2009 at 4:22 pm
Priceline name-your-own-price car rentals FTW!
April 29th, 2009 at 4:51 pm
Three things:
1) tips, are you going to burn your anonymous source on the repo rumor? I know, it’s not like any of our so-called guardian journalists at the likes of the New York Times or the Inquirer do that when they get lied to or manipulated by an source they’ve granted anonymity, but it’s how it’s supposed to work.
2) “loath” = highly disinclined; “loathe” = detest
3) I hope PCS weathers this storm, because as an organization they care a lot more about Philadelphia than Zipcar ever will. Good luck to Eli Massar and his team in mending the gaping hole left in his customers’ good will by PCS’s clumsy and rushed execution of an understandable business decision.
April 29th, 2009 at 4:58 pm
@Gabe: We stand by our source, and we are VERY disinclined to believe these denials, but if the two parties both deny it, it’s not like we have the resources to go dig up the Repo Man and find out what’s what. Unfortunately, that is a job for people who have health insurance.
April 29th, 2009 at 6:21 pm
Here’s a nice link to a craigslist person that claims to have spoken to a repo man.
http://philadelphia.craigslist.org/rnr/1145787632.html
Or just read it.
It must be hard to watch your cars being repossessed. It was a shock for me! I went out to get my car share and someone else was getting it. I told him I had reservations. He told me it was being repossessed and to call “the company”. I figured PCS was finished, but that was not the case. They pulled the short notice from “free to $15.00″ plan thing instead. Brilliant move. Great communication. Now when you call everyone denies that anything happened. Lies, lies, lies. Will it stop?
Maybe it is time. Maybe Philly Car Share needs to go away or be sold.
A little history (most of which can be found with a little Googling):
As with many “non-profits” there is almost always someone making money. Tanya and Clayton were rumored to be pulling 6 figures a year EACH before they left and got fired respectively. Most of the positive hype that came from PCS during the Clayton years was just hype. The goal was not to be green. The goal was and is still to make money (Yes, green money) for those hefty salaries of the people driving PCS into the ground in the name of non-profit and saving the planet. All the while under paying hard working employees and allowing supervisors and the like to fire anyone that they are threatened by (Like someone that does their job to well and makes a department head look bad).
There is a constant flood of lies that are passed on to the employees and then passed on to loyal customers in order to cover up the chaos and collapsing PCS.
Philly Car Share and its well off, don’t really need to work board… need to shit or get off the crapper.
Come clean with the public aka your customers by:
* Get rid of ALL your over paid management or supervisors or whatever new and fancy name you give them so you don’t look like you are wasting time and money.
** And get RID of who ever is giving them out silly names
*** AND HIRE ONE PERSON that is competent and you’ll be better off then with the blind mice you have now.
* Tell us that things are really bad and your are struggling. And for the Love of God don’t wine about it in the name of being “Green”!
* Get glasses for the people that clean the cars so they can see what they aren’t cleaning.
* Stop hiding on the top floor of an office building! Get down to the ground and get in touch with your customers.
* Stop reinventing the wheel. What you are doing has been done. There are so many working models for you to learn from and copy Zipcar.
** Besides, the so called “original” idea was copied from a car share company in California anyway.
*** Hey! There’s a truth you can tell everyone.
* Honesty, honesty, honesty.
** Thin the herd. Your know things are bad. They most likely know more then you think. It sucks, but cutbacks are needed to survive. Let the ones you know you don’t need go so that the whole place doesn’t collapse.
** Then the bill collectors. You want to pay you just can’t right now. What can they do that will will help PCS and them?
Enough ranting. Fix it or leave it for Heaven’s sake.
By the way. I opted out of PCS. I heard you can keep your fob with out getting a $30 charge. I will send it in just to be safe. PCS may need more money in 30 days.
* Location: Philadelphia, PA
* it’s NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests
PostingID: 1145787632
April 29th, 2009 at 7:39 pm
I applied on-line for a Philly Car Share membership over a month ago. Passed the online test with flying colors and was told I’d hear back in about a week. Still nothing. Not a good business model.
April 29th, 2009 at 7:58 pm
Ugh. Let’s pretend that all my typos were PCS’ fault as well, please?
April 29th, 2009 at 9:10 pm
@tips: I hear ya and respect that. Maybe the reporters who do have health insurance will dig a little deeper than the boring, inaccurate, one-source story that’s in the Inquirer today.
April 30th, 2009 at 10:26 am
Nothing to respect here, Gabe. The allegations tips’ “source” has put out could be verified by giving us the specific car and pod where this repossession allegedly took place. It’s not like we’re talking about something internal locked in a secure facility. We’re talking about the sort of thing easily verified. Tips coverage on this = fails. Though, I thank those of you who’ve pointed me to Phillylist for this and future straight dope.
Anyone else see PCS having a general “hating” if not “nuts kicking while its down” attitude toward PCS this week? Looks like its pandering to “populists robbed of freebie” rage with bad info. This digital rag has a chance of becoming the Burnside Journal yet.
April 30th, 2009 at 10:26 am
I mean philebrity having the “hating” and “nut kicking” attitude.
April 30th, 2009 at 11:50 am
From what I gather with the numerous repo statements floating around. There is both the craigslist “witness” plus not so much as a single source from within PCS, but numerous. And in most cases the “big leak” was dished out in a talking to friends fashion like, “You won’t believe what happened at work today”, around a couple bottles of Yuengling Lager. Apparently there is also one or two people that actually spoke to the press or a blog or 2, but would like to maintain their employment and may not have realized that PCS wouldn’t have a sense of humor about losing cars to the bank.
I am not lawyer and could be making the following up… But as a non-profit aren’t all their records supposed to be readily available to everyone? Especially what exactly they are doing with the money they aren’t profiting from? Maybe these records would have the deal with the leasing company in them?
On Massar’s behalf… A cover up is how business is done these days in order to sustain both public confidence and sustainability in the publics eyes. You’d think with Enron, the banks, auto industry and the list goes on… That business’ would learn to cover up better and we would learn to believe everything they say. (and there was much sarcasm)
RE: “nuts kicking while its down”
Yes, everyone likes a freebie, and they aren’t happy about the change or the method of the change. However, if a company gave top notch service was good to both its employees and its customers we would not be having this discussion right now.
So they sneak up and kick the customer in the purse. Where is really counts these days… And don’t expect to get kicked backed?
And apparently are not very good their employees and don’t expect the same treatment back?
PCS common courtesy = FAIL
April 30th, 2009 at 12:13 pm
John DeLucca, you realize that PCS can’t lose cars to a bank, right? It can’t use the cars as collateral since the entire fleet is leased. What has been apparent is that PCS has given up most of its luxury line, which maybe someone way low on the totem pole who wanted more from his bachelors degree than a $9.00/hr customer service gig would construe as repossession.
Again, all sorts of rumors but no one has been able to point to an empty pod and say “see, there was a car here that got picked up by the repo man this weekend.” That’s a very low threshold of truth and even that can’t be made. And wow, a rumor snowballs into a bunch of blogs citing the rumors, and noone knows they’re all citing the same unsubstantiated conjecture. Please.
The insurance “line” is much more plausible. Delivered poorly, but I think this is clearly a member culling for the survival of the org.
Yes, non profit info is easily obtainable if you know a bit about info sourcing beyond a guy with a few Yuenglings in him saying, “you won’t believe what happened today.”
April 30th, 2009 at 9:05 pm
Bank = leasing company = repo-ing cars for non payment = pretty standard practice. PCS pulled some luxury cars BEFORE the leasing company repo-ed the the cars over last weekend. It conveniently provides a good cover up for the f-up.
Need more. People showed up to random pods were they had reserved cars to find … You guessed it! No cars! Wow! And who was clueless about it at first? PCS! Woh! Somebody must have stolen the 25 plus cars! Oh wait they got repo-ed. Next surprise. Get PCS to give a complete list of the cars they pulled on that fateful weekend and you will find Hybrids to Luxury cars just gone. And on a Saturday / Sunday morning hmmm… Bad planning by PCS? Did they forget to take the cars out of the computers so people couldn’t reserve them? Did they forget to leave a car or 2 on the pods for the customers? Maybe it was a late April Fools joke?
Go get ‘em tiger!