Green or Not? How much eco-cred do rental car agencies get for offering hybrids?
The number of hybrid cars in the nation’s largest rental fleets is steadily increasing. Hertz has introduced 3,400 hybrid cars, while Budget offers 2,500 and Enterprise maintains a fleet of 4,000 hybrid rentals. Still, hybrid cars make up a small fraction of the total number of rental cars available. With over 1.8 million rental vehicles available in the United States and under 10,000 of those being hybrids, the commitment to green vehicles seems to be a small one.
How much of this is a reluctance of rental agencies to take a chance on a new product? How much is it the lack of consumer demand for green alternatives? It is true that the popularity of hybrid vehicles is small compared to that of standard, full fuel, cars and trucks. While sales of the Toyota Prius increased a reported 60% in 2007, they still represent a fraction of Toyota’s total business. In the Area of vehicle rentals, the popularity is even less.
Industry analysts believe that the additional cost of hybrid rentals prevents them from becoming more popular. Typically costing $5 to $15 per day more than a standard rental, hybrids have trouble appealing to budget conscious consumers, even with the added value of their fuel savings. Often competing in budget car classes, many looking to rent in that area are not interested enough in driving a hybrid to pay the extra rental fees.
But is this the only thing preventing greater expansion of hybrid fleets? Even with the introduction of “Green Branches” by Enterprise in Atlanta earlier this year, the company maintains only 4,000 hybrids out of a fleet of 1.1 million. The green branches are certainly a move in the right direction but even there, only 60% of available vehicles are hybrids. By making more hybrid vehicles available and promoting their benefits, rental companies could easily increase their popularity among otherwise uninterested consumers. As popularity increases, the price of renting these green cars, which cost less to maintain to begin with, could eventually equal that of standard rentals.
Among rental companies, the battle to be green is not only about offering more hybrids in more targeted markets. Both Enterprise and Hertz have initiated large-scale and generous donation programs to give money to various environmental causes. The value of these actions is great and should not be criticized. However, consumers who attempt to rent hybrid vehicles only to find that they are not available in their areas can’t help but ask if this money could be directed to more relevant activities.
The availability of hybrid rentals is slowly increasing. Eventually, hybrids may be common enough that their rental fees will be equal to, or even less than, those of full fuel rentals. Until then, rental companies will try to be, or at least appear to be, green to appeal to environmentally conscious consumers, while at the same time focusing their energy on maintaining their fleets as they always have. Ultimately, it is the responsibility of the consumer to increase awareness and promote expansion though greater demand.
How much green-cred do under 10,000 hybrid rentals get the industry? Maybe not much, but it is the responsibility of the consumer as much as the agencies to become more environmentally friendly.
Topics: Uncategorized | No Comments »