Fees, pricing and cancellation
Every amount on a RENTLI booking, and what happens to it · Version 1, 27 September 2026
1. What this covers
This policy governs the fare, how it is priced, RENTLI’s commission, the convenience fee, the security deposit, cancellations and refunds, extensions and late returns, what happens when a payment fails, when hosts are settled, and the platform charges that can apply. It sits under the Terms and conditions and alongside the Damage and condition policy. Where the checkout screen shows an amount for your particular booking, that amount governs that booking.
2. The fare, and how it is set
The fare is charged by the hour at the rate shown on the car, and part-hours are charged as full hours. RENTLI sets that rate, taking into account demand, supply, the type of car, how long the trip is, whether it falls on a weekday or a weekend, how far ahead it is booked and other commercial factors, so the same car may show a different rate on different dates. A host states a price expectation when listing the car; RENTLI is not bound to it but takes it into account. Once a booking is confirmed its price is fixed: neither the host nor RENTLI can raise it afterwards.
3. RENTLI’s commission and the convenience fee
A guest pays a convenience fee of 5% of the fare on top of the fare. It is the platform’s only fee charged to a guest, it is shown separately at checkout before you pay, and it is not refunded if you cancel. A host is paid the fare less RENTLI’s commission of 20% of the fare. RENTLI therefore retains 20% of the fare plus the 5% convenience fee, subject to applicable taxes and to any future change in commercial policy, which would apply to future bookings only.
4. The security deposit
A refundable security deposit is quoted with your fare and paid before the trip starts. It secures traffic fines and challans arising from your use of the car, and nothing else. It is not held against damage, fuel, distance or ordinary operating expenses. If no challan claim is open, it is released automatically three days after the car is returned and reaches the account you paid from within 7 to 10 working days. A challan claim pauses that release until the claim is settled, and any deduction must be supported by the challan itself. The one further exception is a trip you abandon without returning the car or ending it, where the late hours you owe may be settled from the deposit. The deposit is not a cap on what you may owe, and it is not forfeited merely because you cancelled — it is returned in every cancellation case below unless a challan claim has already arisen.
| Item | Rule |
|---|---|
| Amount | As quoted with your fare at checkout |
| What it secures | Traffic fines and challans arising during your trip |
| Damage | Not covered — settled directly between guest and host |
| Fuel, tolls, FASTag, parking | Not covered — settled directly between guest and host |
| Automatic release | Three days after return, if no challan claim is open |
| Reaching your account | 7 to 10 working days from release |
| A cap on liability | No — a larger liability remains yours |
5. If a guest cancels
Cancelling more than 6 hours before pickup refunds half of the trip amount, up to a maximum of ₹4,000. Cancelling inside that window refunds none of the trip amount, subject to any right you have under mandatory law. Cancelling after the trip has started refunds none of it unless we expressly allow it. The convenience fee is not refunded in any of those cases. The deposit is a separate mechanism from the cancellation charge and is returned in all of them, unless a challan claim has already arisen.
| When you cancel | What happens |
|---|---|
| More than 6 hours before pickup | Half the trip amount refunded, up to ₹4,000. Fee not refunded. Deposit returned. |
| 6 hours or less before pickup | No trip refund, subject to mandatory law. Fee not refunded. Deposit returned. |
| After the trip has started | No trip refund unless expressly allowed. Fee not refunded. Deposit returned. |
6. If a host cancels
Everything you paid is refunded in full, the convenience fee included. We will help you find another car if one is available, but nothing about your refund waits on that. The cancelling host receives no payout for that booking, may receive a rating or platform penalty, and may face suspension or removal from the platform for repeated cancellations.
7. If a guest does not turn up
Where a guest does not collect the car and the booking runs through to its scheduled end, the trip amount is not refunded. The host’s rental entitlement is settled as if the trip had happened and RENTLI retains its commission. The deposit remains separate and is returned as usual.
8. Returning early
Bringing the car back before the end of your booking does not by itself create a refund for the unused hours. The confirmed booking amount remains payable unless an express refund entitlement applies. Tell your host you are returning early so they can collect the car.
9. Extending, and coming back late
A trip can be extended through RENTLI by the hour, up to 72 hours in total, subject to the car being free. There is no approval step: if the car is available, the extension is made when you pay for it. Extra hours booked more than 6 hours before your scheduled return cost the same hourly rate you originally paid. Inside that window the rate doubles, because your host has already arranged their day around getting the car back — extending early is always cheaper, and the extension screen shows both prices before you commit. Returning the car late without extending is charged by the hour at that same late rate. More than 24 hours overdue without coordinating with your host may trigger the recovery and legal process described in the Terms.
10. Paying
Razorpay is RENTLI’s payment provider. UPI, cards, net banking, wallets and any other method enabled there may be used, and RENTLI never sees or stores your card details. A successful payment is required before the car is handed over: a failed payment means there is no booking, and the car must not be given to you under it. Paying your host directly, in cash or otherwise, for a booking made here is prohibited in both directions.
11. Chargebacks
A chargeback or payment reversal raised after the car has been handed over does not by itself extinguish amounts legitimately due. RENTLI may suspend an account while investigating one, subject to applicable law and to the payment provider’s own procedures. If you think you have been charged wrongly, raise it with support first — it is faster than a chargeback and does not put your account on hold.
12. When hosts are paid
Host transactions run Monday to Sunday and settlement is scheduled for the following Tuesday, subject to the payment provider’s own settlement timing, to fraud and security checks, and to any lawful withholding. A disagreement about damage does not hold up a host’s ordinary rental payout: damage is settled between the host and the guest and is not a reason for RENTLI to withhold money it owes.
13. Refunds
A refund is normally returned to the payment method you used. Where that is not possible it may be made by another lawful method. Once RENTLI issues a refund, how long it takes to appear depends on your bank and on the payment provider — usually 7 to 10 working days, sometimes longer for a card.
14. Platform charges
These are charged by RENTLI in addition to anything you owe your host. They are settled with you directly by support rather than taken from your deposit, which secures challans only. Each is applied on credible evidence and can be disputed through support.
| Event | Current charge |
|---|---|
| Someone other than the verified guest drove the car | ₹2,000, immediate return of the car, suspension or ban |
| Wrong fuel | ₹2,000, plus the actual resulting loss |
| Repairs without the host’s and RENTLI’s agreement | ₹1,000, plus possible suspension |
| Tampering with the tracking device | ₹1,000, plus replacement if it is damaged |
| Lost key or key fob | ₹500, plus actual replacement, programming and towing |
| Smoking, where the listing does not allow it | ₹1,000, plus cleaning |
| A pet, where the listing is not pet-friendly | ₹1,000, plus cleaning or repair where applicable |
| Commercial use | ₹2,000, plus platform and legal action |
| Third speeding incident above the platform threshold | ₹1,000, plus possible suspension |
| Lost documents | The reasonable cost of replacing them |
| Late return | The late hourly rate |
| Not returning the car for more than 24 hours | Recovery and legal process |
15. Tax
Applicable taxes are displayed and handled as the law and RENTLI’s tax registration require. Hosts remain responsible for their own income tax, ownership and tax compliance on what they earn here unless the law provides otherwise, and RENTLI is not responsible for a host’s tax default.
16. Questions about a charge
Raise anything about a fee or a charge through Help and support. Damage questions follow the Damage and condition policy, not this one. Where a booking discloses a specific fee term at checkout, that term generally controls that booking, subject to law. RENTLI may correct a technical or pricing error where it is legally permitted to do so, and will tell you when it does.
A note on this document
This policy was prepared from RENTLI’s business rules and is under review by Indian counsel. Clauses 2, 4, 6 and 9 differ from the draft counsel first reviewed, to reflect decisions taken on 27 September 2026 and to match what the platform actually does: RENTLI sets the price, the deposit secures challans rather than damage, a host cancellation is refunded in full, and extensions run by the hour. The Terms and conditions and the lease agreement generated for each booking carry the same amendments.