With travel booming in warm-weather destinations and a shortage of rental vehicles due to the pandemic, some travelers are facing rental prices of more than $300 a day – or up to $500 a day in certain high-demand areas.
The tool, which gives pricing and demand data for worldwide locations, reveals the significant yield management opportunity due to lower fleet volumes, said Andrew Pascoe, CEO of MarginFuel.
The analytics application utilizes leading indicators to help car rental companies verify and rectify issues in their pricing strategy.
RateGain’s state of the travel industry report found that car rental volumes for the week of Dec. 7 to 13 reached 83% of 2019 levels. New York, SFO, New Orleans, and Las Vegas saw the biggest spikes.
The survey concluded that rental car rates across the country are significantly more affordable than last year, likely due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
RateGain analyzed rate data from airport locations in Europe, finding that advanced reservations for July are showing the first signs of recovery.
In the second Auto Rental News survey of independent and franchised operators in the U.S., 55% of respondents said revenue has decreased 75% to 100% since late February, while 56% reported a drop of volume of 75% to 100%.
The webinar will convene industry experts to discuss the current recovery of car rental in key global markets.
MarginFuel market data shows the average rates trending lower year over year through the first part of the calendar year.
Rates at New Zealand’s three major airports for the Christmas season are experiencing an average rate decrease of 1% compared to 2018, a strong season.