Telematics company RentalMatics and digital key provider Liberkee announced an integration via a new partership in October to advance the opportunities of contactless car rental. It enables customers to offer an app-based experience in addition to the classic counter-centric journey.

According to the company, Liberkee's technology turns the smartphone into a digital key via an app. Each key can be created individually and limited in time. The key can be sent contactlessly to the app on the customer's smartphone and is ready for use during the booking period. With one click, the vehicle can be locked and unlocked. Liberkee also provides important telematics data to the car rental company. This includes mileage, fuel level, and energy level  for EVs, battery charge status, and GPS location. The GPS location is displayed in the app at the same time as the key, allowing the customer to navigate easily to the vehicle.

With the integration into the RentalMatics system and RentalMatics app, car rental companies can also gain insight into the telematics data of each individual vehicle. Digital key management frees up many of the pain points associated with day-to-day key management. Keys are no longer needed to be searched for, keys can no longer be lost, and they can no longer be used in an unauthorized manner, according to the company. This is prevented by an asynchronous encryption method, which is also used in banks and employed in Liberkee's technology.

"We are excited to enter another strong partnership with RentalMatics," added Annika Saenger Acevedo, CMO of Liberkee. "The product is a cutting-edge that understands the needs of customers in the age of digitalization and provides solutions. As a result, the added value not only extends beyond everyday use in the car rental process and fleet management, but also takes the customer experience to a new level. RentalMatics understands, as we do, that the solution to improve the customer experience is already in people's hands: the smartphone. Our phone-as-a-key solution is therefore a perfect fit with RentalMatics' goals and technologies used. The cooperation is an absolute asset for the global mobility sector."