ReachNow shutters car-rental in Seattle, Portland

SEATTLE – ReachNow announced it will shut down its car-rental services in Seattle and Portland this week.

The Seattle Times reports the company offered short-term rentals of BMWs and Mini Coopers, and launched a ride-hailing service last year.

ReachNow announced in May to some of its customers that it was cancelling its ride-hailing service, saying its third-party vendor could no longer support their business.

Automakers BMW and Daimler recently rolled five companies, including ReachNow, into a joint venture. When that was announced, it appeared ReachNow and competing car-rental startup Car2Go would merge.

The company said in a statement Wednesday that a new “realignment” means ReachNow will instead end its rental and ride-hailing services and close its Seattle and Portland offices.

The company encourages customers to sign up for Car2Go. The last day to use ReachNow was Wednesday.

___

Information from: The Seattle Times, http://www.seattletimes.com