Car hire dries up this summer - book now to avoid disappointment
- Holidaymakers urged to book holiday car hire as far in advance as possible
- Car hire shortage on the Spanish mainland and Balearics
Travel expert Bob Atkinson from travelsupermarket.com said: "Holidaymakers need to book quickly to get a car at a good value price as stocks are running low. The Spanish mainland and Balearics in particular are affected. My advice is to book now for the remainder of the summer season and for all dates from now until the October half term as well as Christmas and the New Year. Don't leave it too late as there will either be no availability for the car type of your choice or your rental will cost you a lot more money.
"There is now a clear shortage of cars - something that happened in Alicante and Malaga at Easter, when car supply all but sold out. Therefore, prices are rising rapidly and stock is running low for the remainder of the school holidays, in fact prices are already far higher than the same time last year and are inching up every day."
In the past two weeks alone, Spanish destinations in the Balearics or Spanish Mainland accounted for 28 per cent of all car hire searches on travelsupermarket.com with over 70 per cent for departures within the next six weeks. A quick search on travelsupermarket.com shows that prices for one week's rental between early August and late September are varying by up to £320*.
Bob continued: "As the recession started to take hold, visitor numbers to Spain through the winter were down up to 18 per cent from the UK alone. And with the UK being the single biggest provider of flight arrivals into Spain, that meant a serious decrease. On that basis, car rental companies reassessed the size of their fleets for the winter and summer periods, retiring more cars than normal, without replacing them with new models. In addition, issues around car rental companies in Spain gaining credit for fleet renewals have meant that the worldwide credit crunch has affected fleet sizes. Therefore fleet sizes are smaller. The latest surge in demand, especially over school holiday time, can not be met."
Some examples of the price differences between this year and last year include:
- Balearic Islands Majorca, Menorca and Ibiza - already up to 100 per cent more expensive than this time last year and expected to be sold out on some dates this summer holiday
- Mainland Spain such as Alicante, Malaga - prices are already up to 70 per cent more expensive than this time last year, but stocks are running low on many car types
- Canary Islands Tenerife, Lanzarote, etc. - prices fairly similar to last year with no real problems anticipated
One of travelsupermarket.com's car hire partners, Car Hire 3000, has confirmed that for travel within the next six weeks to the end of August the price hikes are the greatest in the smaller car categories which are always in higher demand. For larger cars price increases are usually not as high, but the fleets are smaller and demand is now starting to switch from smaller to larger vehicles therefore the prices are likely to also increase. Auto Europe and Holiday Autos, two of the biggest car rental brokers in Europe with a significant presence in the UK marketplace, have both verified this.
travelsupermarket.com displays all car hire prices in real time availability ensuring visitors are supplied the most up to date options.
*Comparison of prices in early August compared to late September 2009 - one week's rental
|
Destination |
Date |
Price difference - August more than September |
|
1-8 August 2009 |
19-26 September 2009 |
|
Alicante |
|
|
|
|
Mini |
£264.32 |
£140.30 |
£124.02 |
|
Economy |
£272.72 |
£118.72 |
£154.00 |
|
Medium family |
£285.35 |
£146.43 |
£138.92 |
|
Malaga |
|
|
|
|
Mini |
£248.19 |
£104.05 |
£144.14 |
|
Economy |
£244 |
£113.96 |
£130.04 |
|
Medium family |
£315 |
£138.73 |
£176.27 |
|
Murcia |
|
|
|
|
Mini |
£246 |
£157 |
£89.00 |
|
Economy |
£445.13 |
£133.11 |
£312.02 |
|
Medium family |
£487.92 |
£173.13 |
£314.79 |
|
Majorca |
|
|
|
|
Mini |
£347.70 |
£142 |
£205.70 |
|
Economy |
£351.63 |
£116.58 |
£235.05 |
|
Medium family |
£456 |
£133.98 |
£322.02 |
|
Faro |
|
|
|
|
Mini |
£130.45 |
£128.47 |
£1.98 |
|
Economy |
£187.12 |
£104.35 |
£82.77 |
|
Medium family |
£246 |
£155.04 |
£90.96 |
|
Pisa |
|
|
|
|
Mini |
£173 |
£153.08 |
£19.92 |
|
Economy |
£190.80 |
£148.48 |
£42.32 |
|
Medium family |
£226 |
£182 |
£44.00 |
|
Nice |
|
|
|
|
Mini |
£206 |
£154.08 |
£51.92 |
|
Economy |
£212.83 |
£154.08 |
£58.75 |
|
Medium family |
£241 |
£175.84 |
£65.16 |
|
Orlando |
|
|
|
|
Mini |
Not applicable |
Not applicable |
- |
|
Economy |
£101 |
£101 |
£0.00 |
|
Medium family |
£111 |
£111 |
£0.00 |
Source: travelsupermarket.com, 20 July 2009
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