(Yicai Global) Dec. 19 -- Chinese car-sharing firm ToGo is embroiled in a deposit refund crisis, with users lining up outside its headquarters in a scene reminiscent of ones also seen this week at the offices of similarly troubled bike-sharer Ofo.

ToGo founder Wang Lifeng appeared at the Beijing headquarters yesterday but users blocked his entry, Jiemian News reported. He finally left with the help of security guards, it added.

Over 10 million people are awaiting refunds from bike-sharer Ofo in a run-on-the-bank-style crisis of confidence that seems to be overwhelming the country's sharing economy domino fashion.

Founded in July 2015, ToGo debuted its car-sharing app in September. It operates in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu and Xi'an. All its vehicles 'disappeared' from Nanjing in August after the firm came into arrears on parking and fuel fees, whereupon the deposit refund crisis erupted. Now almost no cars are available in Beijing on the ToGo app, either.

"The overall experience is quite good, but the number of cars has kept dropping since August," said a user surnamed Ren who had driven its cars for more than a year. "I called customer service to ask why, and they said that some cars had been withdrawn for installation of electronic oil cards. Almost no cars were visible by mid-October, however."

Each customer must deposit CNY1,500 (USD218) to use ToGo's cars. Yesterday, some tried to take computers from the company's offices to get back their deposits, but guards stopped them. Some staffers were seen leafing through their labor contracts, while others demanded wages, Jiemian reported.

ToGo staff checked the phone numbers of users who turned up at its headquarters to see if they had broken any rules of use. Those with a clean record should receive their deposits back in the order that their applications were filed, but only 15 can obtain refunds each day via offline registration, Jiemian News learned.

ToGo staff confirmed that refunds through online requests and offline registration are treated differently, and users can receive refunds directly only through the second means. The date of registration was yesterday rescheduled for Feb. 15 at 5 p.m., as many users still waited to register, Jiemian said.

ToGo provides car-sharing services featuring charge-by-the-minute, self-service car rental, with return at any location allowed, while its rivals can only dock at designated sites. Many flagship models such as Mercedes-Benz Smart, BMW Mini, BMW 1 Series and Audi A3 are available to users, information on its website shows.

The ToGo pattern affords users greater convenience, but also increases operating costs. The company pays parking fees for up to five hours, with users footing the bill thereafter. Some immediately stop and surrender a car when they open the app and see a parking fee already over CNY100, they told Jiemian.

Editor: Ben Armour