Blog Post
Car Rental and TNC: Has the Threat Turned to Opportunity?
On its first quarter conference call, Hertz was candid about the impact of Uber and Lyft — as well as the unrealized revenue potential.
Chris Brown, executive editor of Business Fleet, Auto Rental News, and Fleet Forward, offers his perspective on fleets, auto rental, and the new mobility ecosystem. Along with related publications and online newsletters, Chris produces the International Car Rental Show and the Fleet Forward Conference. Chris is relied on as an industry resource in matters by major media outlets such as the Washington Post, New York Times, Forbes, Wall Street Journal, and National Public Radio.
On its first quarter conference call, Hertz was candid about the impact of Uber and Lyft — as well as the unrealized revenue potential.
One, the method in which operators put renters into cars is becoming more fluid and varied; the second: “The days of 60% utilization are over.”
Sales into rental fleets are up in the first quarter, while residual values are softening. Are higher fleet costs and over fleeting on the horizon?
Where is car rental headed with initiatives surrounding Mobility as a Service offerings, fleet management of autonomous vehicles, subscription services, and a rental fleet that connects it all?
A new group of fleet owners has emerged to supply peer-to-peer platforms. They’re getting together, learning fast, and hungry for resources. They’re not going away.
“Disengagement reports” reveal how many times a human driver had to take control of a driverless car in testing in California. A few well-publicized autonomous players lagged far behind.
The money for the 2019 Atlanta Jazz Festival is appropriated from a car rental tax under the premise of “a downturn in the economy” and a decrease in sponsorships, though neither seems to be the case.
While the U.S. car rental market hit a new revenue record of $30 billion in 2018, there are a few items on the industry’s “to-do list” to best position itself for the future of transportation.
From bypassing the rental counter to new ancillary sales opportunities, a completely connected rental fleet will transform the traditional rental model. And it can’t come soon enough.
Let’s take a moment to reflect on the long path to the passage of the car rental excise tax amendment in the FAA reauthorization.