How a national rental car shortage is impacting Utah vacationers
SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) — As we approach summer vacation season, a lot of people are getting a rude awakening when trying to find a rental car.
Renting an economy or compact car for just a couple of days could cost around $400 — and that’s if you book early.
The prices continue to go up as vacationers look for larger vehicles to rent. It’s a national issue that’s hitting the Salt Lake City area pretty hard.
Chad Knavel, vice president and general manager of Rugged Rental and Sales, said he’s had to turn business away because of lack of availability of some vehicles.
Knavel explained the reason behind the limited supply boils down to the pandemic. He said in order to survive the pandemic, many car rental companies last year downsized and sold off portions their fleet.
"And we kept most of our fleet," Knavel said. “I think we guessed right in that we may have a problem getting vehicles."
Turns out it was the right move. The pandemic knocked the wheels off the global supply chain, disrupting everything you can imagine for the auto industry, just as vacationers are looking for rentals.
Knavel said new car shipments to the U.S. are delayed.
It’s a complicated juggling act for rental companies across Salt Lake City, including Discount Rent-A-Car.
Cindy Byer, president and CEO, said diversifying her business to include auto repair helped in preventing layoffs.
But as more people are looking to travel again, the challenge is figuring out whether to buy more cars — that are now more expensive — or hold off.
Byer explained that rental companies would typically purchase more vehicles to meet customer demand, but the pandemic made companies hesitant in car buying. Now, customers are dealing with a limited supply and higher rental rates.
It’s economics, supply and demand,” said Byer. “To rent an SUV, say for a week, a couple weeks ago everybody was out, and the price if you had one you were able to rent it out for $2,000 a week, which is unheard of."
If you plan on renting a vehicle for your next vacation, rental companies suggest not holding off until the last minute, book as soon as you can.
