As a result of the struggling economy, over the past year, car rental companies have sold over four hundred thousand of the vehicles from their fleets. Although it is common for car rental companies to sell the older vehicles in their fleets, this is a huge leap in the average number that have been sold in the past.
According to Michelle Higgins: “In May, the average rate for a weekly airport rental of a compact car booked seven days in advance was $346, up a whopping 73 percent compared with $199.65 for the same month last year, according to the Abrams Consulting Group, based in Purchase, N.Y., which tracks rental rates.”
Although there is no denying that this is a huge increase in the average cost of getting a rental car, that doesn’t mean that you have to go broke to get one, it just means that you have to make sure that you are a savvy shopper before making a rental car reservation.
One of the most reliable ways to get a better car rental rate is to book advance. If you wait until you are at an airport car rental counter to make a reservation, you can forget about saving any money. By using price comparison websites (and keeping in mind that you can also check out the prices of smaller car rental companies),you should be able to get a decent car rental rate for your trip.
