Price First, Drive Later: The Current State of the Rental Car Market

Thinking of booking a rental car for a vacation this summer? You may want to start considering your options sooner rather than later.

“The current situation is that rental car companies will still be charging higher prices simply because the supply has not met the demand,” Michael Taylor, J.D. Power Travel & Hospitality Intelligence lead, recently told The Washington Post.

Mike suggests flipping the typical pattern of trip planning, by looking at rental car prices first before booking flights or hotels.  

Not much has changed when it comes to price in the rental car market.  In a J.D. Power press release from 2021, Mike shared that: “Rental car companies have been facing significant challenges, both in terms of vehicle supply and staffing—and a combination of rising costs and long lines at the airport is having a negative effect on customer satisfaction. Even when customers are aware of the macroeconomic challenges, their personal experiences quickly outweigh economic theory, and the result is lower customer satisfaction.”

Read more about the current state of the rental car market here.