Market statistics of the car rental in Europe

The European car rental market is actively expanding and many companies prefer to automate their work. That allows improving communication with customers, to prevent negative trends and to increase profits. The car rental market is expanding as in the amount of the companies and geographically as well.

Types of car rental companies

Firms that provide rental services for cars are conventionally divided into several types:

• Branches of international car rental companies.
  They have offices in each city, they cooperate with the government of other countries and it is possible to rent a car directly on the official website. Such companies are distinguished by reliability, while the prices for the cars and deposit are high, as well as the requirements for the driver.
• Dealers and sites aggregators which offer services of the big amount of international companies. The main advantage is the ability to find the best offer in the required region.
• Large local car rental companies with experience and several offices in the country.
  Located in almost every city, especially in resorts. Requirements for the driver are less strict and the deposit is lower, as well as the simplified procedure of receiving and returning the car.
• Local companies with a small vehicle fleet or without it.
  Also offer simpler conditions, but there is a chance to get caught by unfair distributors who want only to get more money.
• Dealers and sites aggregators specializing in local car rental.
• Narrow-profile organizations that are specialized in the car rental of premium class.
• Car rentals at airports, shops, and car services.

Each type has its own characteristics, advantages, and disadvantages. If to talk about the central part and the north of Europe there are more relevant international companies, and in the south are more popular the local ones.

What is an aggregator?

An aggregator is a kind of a site-broker that includes all existing offers in a particular country, city or region. Often the prices for the car rental in the aggregator do not differ from direct cooperation, and sometimes they are lower.

Typically, sites-aggregators earn commissions from each order. Such platforms have big discounts in all presented rental organizations. The reduced cost is due to these discounts and high competition between such sites.

It is worth to remember when comparing the cost while searching for a rental car, it is important to check the availability of insurance that is included in this price. Some sites automatically include compulsory insurance policies in the price, while on others the price is indicated without additional payments, which in fact will still have to be paid.

If we talk about compulsory insurance when renting a car in Europe, then it includes:

1. Insurance in case of an accident. Exempts the driver from additional financial expenditures if the car is damaged. Insurance covers the amount that exceeds the deposit.
2. Insurance in case of car theft. Protects against possible car theft and removes responsibility from the driver.
3. Liability insurance. Covers damage to third parties. In terms of the contract, the maximum limit of such a policy is specified.

What software do the rental offices use?

The automation of the rental service is a difficult and labor-intensive process, which must be stable, accurate and high-quality. That includes the accounting of customers and rented cars, their operational characteristics and state, as well as the generation of reports and contracts, document management and other things.

Using such software allows you to:

• get customer statistics;
• generate all the required documents for printing;
• keep a record of the rented cars, payments and calculations with the customer;
• keep a detailed history of the exploitation of each car, etc.

The automated work process reduces the time for processing each order, excludes the possibility of renting a car to two different customers at once, allows you to store a complete customer base, track the location of each vehicle and minimizes the time spent on reporting.

There are a large number of similar programs on the market and each of them has pros and cons. The main characteristic of the good rental car software is the ability to organize the effective working process of car rental service, solving the tasks of the company.

The nuances of the work of the car rental service:

Every car rental service strives to get as many orders as possible and to keep the client's satisfaction. People who rent a car can forget what they were offered and what discounts they have got, but they will never forget the attitude towards them and the emotions they received. So this is the purpose of the work of the support service. The service is ignored by most car rental companies, but in fact, it is a perfect opportunity to maintain the client's satisfaction and develop the business with a positive reputation.

The benefits of quality service:

• Attraction of new clients. The understanding between the car rental company and the customer is the key to a successful business. Good reviews about the service are the trust factor, which in many cases is decisive when choosing a rental office. If existing customers are fully satisfied, they will recommend it.
• To keep the customers. Keeping the existing base is important as well as to get new customers. If the client likes the service provided and he is fully satisfied with the behavior of the staff, most likely, if he needs it again, he will not look for other options.
• Improvement of business reputation. Network reputation is very important for business development. Most of the clients are looking for services online, there are reviews about the companies, which allow choosing the perfect car rental. Real positive feedback can be obtained only by providing the good service.
  

How to improve customer satisfaction

You can improve the satisfaction of clients by following the recommendations:

• You can not compromise when it comes to quality of service. Any discount or additional service will not brighten up the spoiled impression.
• A simple questionnaire or a form to close each contract will allow understanding what the client liked and what he didn't.
• Monitoring reviews on the Internet will give an understanding of the general mood of customers and identify the weak sides of the company. It is also recommended to give feedback on each comment, regardless of its content and according to the outcome to correct the work of the company.
• Employee training programs will help them to establish proper communication with customers.

Satisfied customers are the key to car rental success. Car rental in Europe becomes more popular and new firms are opening a lot, but only a few really bother with all the nuances of service.

Resume

Each reliable car rental company offers its customers a full range of necessary services. This requires an effective organization of its activities. More and more modern car rental companies use special car rental software that allows improving customer relationships, which in its turn improves the rates of orders and increases profits of the organization.

There are a huge number of programs on the market that simplify cooperation with customers. But not all of them solve the company's tasks. In order to achieve efficiency in practice, a whole system is needed that meets the specifics of the car rental business processes