Already in poor shape before the pandemic, the American rental company Hertz had no choice but to file for bankruptcy in the United States and Canada. However, operations in Europe, Australia and New Zealand are not affected by the restructuring associated with the Chapter 11 filing.The impact of Covid-19 on travel demand was sudden and dramatic, leading to a sharp fall in the company's revenues and future bookings."Hertz intends to cut costs by shedding 10,000 employees in North America.
The mood among American rental companies is heavy. The group Budget noticewhich is also cash-strapped, is cutting its workforce in volumes equivalent to those of Hertz, whileEnterprise has asked for help from the US government.
The situation is no better in Europe, where Europcar had to refinance itself to the tune of €300m, of which €220m was guaranteed by the French government. As a result, on both sides of the Atlantic, fleets have been scaled back in the face of a sluggish market and little visibility of a recovery in travel.
Reinforced health protocols and increased digitalisationAimed at tourists this summer and business travellers this autumn, car hire companies are promoting their health measures to deal with Covid-19. These protocols concern both agencies that vehicle handling processduly disinfected after each hire. This specific issue of cleaning is all the more relevant to car-sharing vehicles and company fleets. With the help of specialists, each rental company has therefore made commitments on cleanliness and trained its staff in these new sanitary protocols. Another consequence of this pandemic is the increased use of new technologies. digital solutions in order to reduce human contact to a minimum: use of applications to book, provision of tablets for agents to use in branch car parks, codes to unlock the vehicle, etc. Is this enough to reassure travellers? Hire companies are hoping so, because travellers may prefer the car to the train or plane for short distances, for obvious reasons of social distance. |
