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Car rental
SEVERAL SIGNS INDICATE that car rental is on the up. The Guild of Travel Management Companies’ (GTMC) figures for 2013 show an 8 per cent year-on-year increase in car rental transactions, while one top consultancy says that preliminary findings showing the global car rental market was worth Ð50 billion in 2013, a rise of 11 per cent on 2012. The British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association says its members reported a strong 2013, with sales increasing on 2012 levels. “Business is growing in all sectors, particularly corporate business which is now matching leisure sales in volumes,” says the association’s chief executive Gerry Keaney. Carlson Wagonlit Travel’s 2014
Travel Price Forecast predicts small price increases across most markets around the world – apart from a few slight dips in Europe, including Italy and Spain. One way companies can mitigate against price rises is by ensuring that policy is clear and adhered to. Unusually, travel managers have few complaints on that score: “We have compliance 99 per cent of the time and, only occasionally, when what we have asked for is not available, have we had to upgrade,” says Cherry Salvesen, PA to the directors of engineering firm Cullum Detuners. Tailoring car size to the number
of people on a trip is part of Cullum's policy, and duty of care is another aspect of it. “Usually, there are at least two people travelling together on long-haul trips, so they share the driving,” says Salvesen. “In the UK, they have transfers home or to the office and are not allowed to drive.”
REALISTIC POLICIES Many travel buyers have similar restrictions written into policy, and as Portman Travel senior vice-president John Dick points out: “It’s important to make sure travel policy is realistic and appropriate to the needs of the business. We can also log details of any challenges there are with the
policy, share that with clients and modify it.” Cap Gemini books car rental
through its agency, BCD. “They keep compliance really high,” says senior purchasing manager Roger Peters. The firm uses Europcar everywhere bar the US, where it contracts Avis, and does not have a hard and fast policy, but takes care to mitigate risk. This contrasts with Amdocs, whose policy is rigorously enforced: “If they don’t book within policy, they don’t get reimbursed,” says European travel manager Emma de Lange. Hitachi Capital Vehicle Solutions asks customers to give the reason for hire, and this is recorded in a report. “We take a consultative approach with customers and discuss results monthly to ensure the appropriate vehicle is being used for each rental,” says the company’s head of rental Kathleen Whittam. “For example, with a larger group, we can suggest a seven-seater, as this carries more people and allows for shared driving responsibilities, making it a cheaper and safer option than multiple rentals.”
BOOKING AHEAD Booking tools also help monitor and apply compliance – those of Enterprise Rent-a-Car, Europcar, Hitachi Capital Vehicle Solutions and Thrifty can be tailored to customers’ travel programmes. Enterprise assistant vice-president Rob Ingram says: “We can write clients’ policies into the tools we offer, and add marketing messages such as: ‘Please remember to refuel the car on return.’ And drivers can click on a link that takes them to their policy.” Compliance to policy is also an important part of duty of care, whether that is ensuring travellers do not drive after a long- haul flight or allowing them satnav, which ensures “drivers are less stressed when driving in unfamiliar towns”, says Thrifty’s corporate sales director, Caroline Gallagher. However, the bottom line is still the driving force for travel managers,
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