Planning to rent a car, house or pool through an app? Here's what you should know

The high cost of living is just one reason more Canadians are finding ways to make extra money on the side. A 2024 Statistics Canada study found nearly 900,000 Canadians are even making it their full-time job.

But experts say the flexibility offered by popular peer-to-peer marketplace apps comes with risks.

Calgary resident Michael DeJesus rents out his basement, trailer and even his hot tub.

“I just like working with people and having different income streams is pretty good, especially in this economy,” he said.

DeJesus says doing business on multiple platforms could come with risks, which is why he says he vets his renters and interacts with them while they're on site.

“I have the power to decide who comes into my property or not,” he said. “I also have a camera in the front to show which car they’re driving or who is coming in and out.”

Daniel Tsai, an Adjunct Professor of Law, Business and Technology at the University of Toronto, called peer-to-peer rental a “buyer beware” situation.

“The issue is that you place a lot of trust in these platforms to make it right if things go wrong,” said Tsai.

“Sometimes, these platforms turn a blind eye. Other times, insurance kicks in and with that being the case, sometimes the insurance isn’t enough.”

DeJesus rents his hot tub on Swimply, a platform where people can rent short-term accommodations to swim, eat, and take photos. The app was recently mired in controversy after a Quebec woman came home on Sunday to find strangers in her pool.

“I was like, 'What are you doing here?'” said Maryse Chaussé.

Chaussé believes her former tenant created an account without her knowledge and rented out her pool.

In a statement to CTV News, Swimply said it “has a robust system in place to prevent, detect and respond to fraudulent activities.”

“I think more has to be done by the platforms and even the banks, the payment processors, the financial intermediaries to help clamp down on this fraud,” said Tsai. “Make sure the platform itself has a policy that ensures that if anything goes wrong, they’re fully responsible and liable if there’s misuse and abuse.”

Also -- don’t do E-transfers to someone you’ve never met.

If you need to exchange money, do it through the platform and use your credit card. That way, the platform will likely bear some responsibility for the transaction, he says. If you’re a victim of fraud, you can ask your credit card company to reimburse you for failure to receive what you paid for if there’s a dispute with the owner or merchant.

Don’t use your debit card or e-transfer. Those methods aren't protected in the same way.

Finally, take pictures of everything before and after your stay so you have a record of how you found and left it. The same rule applies if you're renting a car. 

Protection options for popular apps: 

• Airbnb host and guest protections
• Turo insurance and guest support
• Swimply protections guide
• Facebook Marketplace purchace protection and commerce guides
• Uber driver insurance and delivery protections