Need a rental car? Book earlyĬar rentals are often an afterthought for travelers – something to do after booking airline tickets and hotels or vacation rentals. It's going to be everywhere,'' Weinberg said. "The problem seems to be getting worse, not better,'' said AutoSlash founder Jonathan Weinberg.Īnd it's sure to spread beyond spring break destinations as a rush of newly vaccinated Americans resume travel, many emboldened by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention's recent announcement that travel poses a low risk to them. AutoSlash, a car rental search site that applies discount codes, coupons and other promotions to help travelers save money, said 18 of 20 airports in Florida were sold out of cars during many spring break weekends. Travelers in several vacation destinations, including Hawaii Las Vegas Phoenix and Orlando, Florida, have reported recent problems with availability, prices and long airport check-in lines to pick up the car. They are moving cars to areas with high demand, spokespeople for both companies told USA TODAY. The companies and their competitors concede availability is an issue and will continue to be in the summer as travel rebounds. Hertz and Enterprise Holdings, which owns the Enterprise, National and Alamo brands, say they are working closely with automakers to add cars to their fleets as quickly as possible, a process complicated by a microchip shortage that has temporarily closed some auto factories.
Pile up in Phoenix: Car rentals stack up at Sky Harbor Airport
Rental giant Hertz, which also owns the Dollar and Thrifty brands, was forced to file for bankruptcy reorganization in May and quickly started selling thousands of used cars in its fleet. The coronavirus pandemic devastated the travel industry, and car rental companies responded by shedding cars in their fleets, just as airlines did with planes. Car renters be warned: surging demand and a shrunken supply of cars equals bad economics as summer travel season looms.
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