Monthly Archives: November 2010

Holiday Autos Maintains its Award Winning Reputation

Holiday Autos, the world’s largest car hire broker is honoured to be the winner of the Travel Journalists’ Award for Best UK Travel Website at the 2010 Travel Press Awards. This prestigious award is voted for by a panel of the leading travel writers, broadcasters, journalists and industry executives and is highly sort after in the industry.

The Holiday Autos website was praised for being user friendly and relevant with quality content and an easy booking process.

Head of Marketing, Hema Nagar commented: “We’re delighted to be named the winners of this fantastic accolade. Being recognised in this highly competitive category is the culmination of the hard word work and commitment across the business to deliver a high quality, easy to use service to our customers at all times. We look forward to delivering customers the very best car hire experience today and in the future”.

 

First snow brings flurry of winter travel insurance advice

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has warned that 31% of Brits going on winter sports holidays do so without adequate travel insurance.

Officials gave examples of potential costs from suffering an accident abroad while uninsured, ranging from £6,400 for a broken bone in France to £23,000 for a spinal fracture in South America.

The FCO also highlighted some common myths about winter sports insurance. It said that 61% of people were unaware that most policies don’t cover off-piste accidents, and that it was not widely realised that the European Health Insurance Card, while covering the costs of medical treatment under the local country’s health service, does not pay for repatriation costs such as an air ambulance.

Another problem highlighted by officials was holidaymakers being unaware that alcohol has a stronger effect at high altitude, such as ski resorts. They noted that most insurers will often refuse to pay out if alcohol is considered to be a contributing factor to an accident.

And one official even noted that the risks aren’t confined to the slopes: icy surfaces can lead to slips and falls around resorts, especially among holidaymakers not used to such

First snow brings flurry of winter travel insurance advice

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has warned that 31% of Brits going on winter sports holidays do so without adequate travel insurance.

Officials gave examples of potential costs from suffering an accident abroad while uninsured, ranging from £6,400 for a broken bone in France to £23,000 for a spinal fracture in South America.

The FCO also highlighted some common myths about winter sports insurance. It said that 61% of people were unaware that most policies don’t cover off-piste accidents, and that it was not widely realised that the European Health Insurance Card, while covering the costs of medical treatment under the local country’s health service, does not pay for repatriation costs such as an air ambulance.

Another problem highlighted by officials was holidaymakers being unaware that alcohol has a stronger effect at high altitude, such as ski resorts. They noted that most insurers will often refuse to pay out if alcohol is considered to be a contributing factor to an accident.

And one official even noted that the risks aren’t confined to the slopes: icy surfaces can lead to slips and falls around resorts, especially among holidaymakers not used to such

Driving Home for Christmas?

Christmas 2010 set to be a family affair as trend for UK “stay-cations” remains strong

Holiday Autos, the UK’s largest leisure car hire broker, has seen a surge in UK car hire pick-ups during December as customers hit the roads to spend time with family and friends during the festive break.

In 2009, the UK was the third most popular destination for December car hire, with Spain at the top spot followed closely by USA. The most recent data reveals that the UK has seen an increase in car hire collections throughout December 2010 and is currently the second most popular pick-up destination.  With 36 days until the end of the year, there is every chance the UK will supersede the volume of bookings it achieved last year.

Stuart Nassos of Holiday Autos says: “We are seeing a rise in the number of people hiring cars throughout December and believe that this can be attributed to a number of factors. Not only does having a car over the festive period give you flexibly and space to carry luggage, gifts and passengers, it can also be a cheaper, and often more convenient alternative to many forms of public transport.

“For example, a family of four travelling from London to Edinburgh on Christmas Eve can expect to pay well over £300 in train tickets. However, hiring a car for a week from London can be up to a third cheaper, costing just over £200. This not only saves you money but gives you the freedom to travel when it suits you and to transport the whole family as well as all your luggage for the festive break in comfort.

“In addition to the convenience factor that a hire car brings, customers who have a smaller car at home may require something a little bigger to fulfil their needs over the Christmas period and choose to hire a larger car instead of trying to squeeze everything and everyone in. Also, those travelling by plane or train to their destination may have need of a car once they arrive and opt to hire one instead of relying on local public transport or taxis.

“2010 has also seen better availability of cars in key locations which in turn has helped bring down the cost of car hire as well as offering consumers a greater selection of available cars at competitive rates.”

Holiday Autos is gearing up its network of over 190 partners to ensure more cars are available in the run up to Christmas and New Year. On average, bookings are made up to 30 days in advance of travel but, currently for UK destinations, Holiday Autos has seen this drop to 14 days. With this in mind, they is urging people book as early as possible to avoid paying over the odds for car hire this Christmas.

Stuart Nassos continues: “Planning ahead and thinking about your travel requirements will ensure that you don’t arrive at your destination to find that none of the cars available match your needs or that you have to pay more for a car that does. With so many elements to plan and prepare for, travel arrangements are the last thing that should be allowed to spoil the festive period.”

Holiday Autos has also compiled a list of top tips to help customers beat Christmas car hire rush this year:

  • Book early – popular destinations sell out fast so as soon as you’ve booked your holiday, make sure you get your hire car at the same time or you could end up paying over the odds
  • Get the right car for your needs – small cars tend to be the first to get booked up so don’t rely on these being available last minute. Equally, think about the number of passengers and luggage you are likely to take. If you need to upgrade when you get there you might find it tricky to get another car, or pay a hefty supplement
  • Plan your route – avoid getting lost en route by pre-booking a Sat Nav with your hire car

 

Car Rental Forgetfulness Sees Loved Ones Left Behind

Most of us can relate to emotional goodbyes with loved ones at the airport, however it’s normally because we intend to leave them behind.  Leading car hire broker Holiday Autos has seen recently that this isn’t always the case – several holiday goers have left relatives behind in hire cars – and not just living ones!

It will come as no shock that many items such as sunglasses or passports regularly get forgotten and go missing when in transit. However, Holiday Autos can reveal that some far more interesting items have turned up in cars dropped off at airports by their customers.

Some of the most bizarre items to be left in hire cars according to Holiday Autos include::

  • No less than two full urns
  • A five year old boy (later collected by frantic parents who’d gone on to check in without him!)
  • €2,000 in cash
  • Bags full of dirty underwear
  • Grasshoppers and assorted insects stored in a jar

Though it may seem unbelievable that families really do leave the ashes of their nearest and dearest behind, this really did happen in both Spain and Ireland. With a car being hired out every 100 seconds, it is no surprise that Holiday Autos really has seen it all when it comes to customer forgetfulness.

The customer services department try to return any missing items – but it’s best if people call as soon as they realise the item is lost so they can get in touch with the supplier.

Stuart Nassos of Holiday Autos says: “The stress of rushing for a flight can mean that items get left behind, although it’s pretty extreme to leave your relatives behind! If this happens of course we do all we can to return possessions to the correct owner, but you should always leave plenty of time to thoroughly check the rental car before handing over the keys.”

Car Hire Firms Learn from a Difficult 2010

Managing the unknown is, more than ever, the key to survival for global car hire firms in 2011.

Crisis management and economic unpredictability are the two biggest issues to come out of a debate hosted by car hire broker Holiday Autos, featuring senior representatives from major car hire firms across the continent and South Africa.

Stuart Nassos, Managing Director of Holiday Autos UK, Nordics and Ireland said: “2010 has been a tumultuous year for the travel industry as a whole that has seen major disruption due to Iceland’s volcanic eruption, strike after strike and the ongoing economic downturn.  We wanted to bring together the leading car hire industry figures from countries most affected and dependent on inbound UK travellers to gain a retrospective understanding of how the industry has fared and how the lessons learned can shape our approach in 2011.”

Emmanouella Vassilakis, General Manager of Autohellas (Hertz) in Greece, said it had been the “most difficult year they’d experienced,” with “three national strikes in the summer and a pilot strike in July.” Despite a 7% decrease in revenue, tourism was not hit as badly as other business and “road conditions are getting better and better.” She also lauded the arrival of low cost airlines and fantastic weather. They could do nothing about the strikes, but Hertz were lucky at least that they had their own garages so did not run out of fuel.

Their biggest challenge, in view of the collapse of the economy, is that the country is living on borrowed money and there is no credit for buyback, a common theme among participants. Vassilakis went on to explain that because of this, they sell their fleet on to small companies, many of which go out of business in five to six years. This ultimately can disturb business by offering older, lower quality cars.

South Africa is another country to benefit from better roads following investment in infrastructure for the Football World Cup, which also resulted in the best year ever for Europcar South Africa International, according to their CEO, Dawn Nathan-Jones. Nathan-Jones admitted they had underestimated demand and voiced words of caution as, after the World Cup, they felt the effects of the recession and there was a reduction in domestic travel.

Joao Oliveira from Portugal’s Autorent (Sixt) confirmed that the country has been struggling, although this hasn’t affected car rental as much as expected and they are up on 2009. They suffered a loss in UK visitors and a lack of demand has driven car rental prices down, but they have seen an increase in big-spending Russian visitors. Neighbours Spain also has a credit problem, Europa Rent a Car (Goldcar)’s Andrea Tuinenburg explaining that it is difficult to buy cars but that, overall, supply is up on 2009, meaning better prices for the increased number of tourists.

Guirec Grand-Clement, Global Sales and Marketing Director from Europcar International  pointed out that the strikes in France have impacted business and caused petrol shortages. However, although demand is very volatile, corporate is slightly  stronger than leisure. While back at home, Nick Harwood from Europcar UK explained they paid a premium by booking early to secure their fleet, but the summer trade held up to 2009 levels, despite bad weather and problems getting hold of automatics and larger cars. Harwood hopes that the ‘staycation’ trend continues through uncertain times in the UK economy, with tax rises, job cuts and the strong euro continuing to encourage people to holiday at home.

A factor highlighted by Emmanouella Vassilakis, and common to other countries, is that duration has decreased due to the economic climate: “People used to hire a car for 15 days and only use it for 3-4 days of their holiday. Now they hire for a day at a time for each transfer.”

On to management of the volcanic ash disruption and other crises, how did they cope and what has been learnt? Well, there’s not much they can do about flights not turning up and cars sitting on the lots, according to Vassilakis. Guirec Grand-Clement added that: “Client communication is key – we must keep customers fully informed in the future with regular communications,” a sentiment echoed by Nick Harwood: “An emergency contact is essential, fleet movements increase with one-way hires and we should do more to liaise with flights.”

So, predictions for the future? Colm Menton, General Manager of Dollar Thrifty Car Rental in Ireland, believes demand can’t get any worse in Ireland but fleet supply and funding will be an issue; Joao Oliveira is worried about the internal market in Portugal but is confident that the leisure rental activity will increase because of the German market; in Greece Emmanouella Vassilakis is confident that tourism is growing but is worried that they have to sell three cars to buy one.

Here in the UK, Nick Harwood thinks more cars will be on offer in 2011, pricing is hard to predict and the VAT increases will hit the industry.

Ups, downs and unknowns – cautious optimism is the message and lessons learnt for 2011.

 

Brits Refuse to Forgo Holidays Despite Belt Tightening Times

Factoring in core holiday elements early could help cut overall cost of a holiday

Consider your car hire costs when choosing your holiday destination – one of many useful tips for travellers booking holidays in Europe and further afield to emerge from a debate hosted by car hire broker Holiday Autos and featuring senior representatives from major car hire firms across the continent and South Africa.

Stuart Nassos, Managing Director of Holiday Autos UK, Nordics and Ireland said: “2010 has been a tumultuous year for the travel industry as a whole that has seen major disruption due to Iceland’s volcanic eruption, strike after strike and the ongoing economic downturn.  We wanted to bring together the leading car hire industry figures from countries most affected and dependent on inbound UK travellers to gain a retrospective understanding of how the industry has fared and how the lessons learned can shape our approach in 2011.”

The serious economic downturn has hit the UK hard, with car hire companies concerned about the impact of public sector job cuts and domestic tax hikes in addition to Air Passenger Duty increases. Add to that the continuing weak pound against the euro and it is clear to see why car hire companies overseas are seeing less British visitors. Guirec Grand-Clement, Global Sales and Marketing Director from Europcar International echoed this point “The strikes in France have impacted business and caused petrol shortages. However, although demand is very volatile, corporate is slightly stronger than leisure.”

Despite these factors, travel is one of the last things that we Brits consider giving up – a point made by Emmanouella Vassilakis from Autohellas (Hertz), Greece: “People cut personal cars, housing costs and clothes first: but tourism is the last thing they cut” and reiterated by Colm Menton, General Manager of Dollar Thrifty Car Rental in Ireland, “Consumers are cutting back on some things but they are still travelling. But currency is the key worry because of weak Sterling.”

There are affordable holidays to be had even in the Eurozone due to discounting in other countries that have been hit hard by the downturn. As the debate revealed, you can pick up car hire bargains in Portugal, Ireland, Spain and Greece.

Joao Oliveira of Autotrent (Sixt) in Portugal bemoaned the fact that “cheap flights are leading the market” as UK customers look for flight bargains first without considering the costs when they arrive.  Andrea Tuinenburg from Europa Rent a Car (Goldcar) in Spain agreed: “Cars are the last thing people purchase after flights and hotels”.

Their argument? If you book independently it’s worth considering the holiday package as a whole and adding up the three core costs (car hire, accommodation and flights) together as an online company such as lastminute.com does. You may well find that it is worth spending more on a flight and accommodation if you save on car rental in that country. And don’t forget to factor in sundries – the costs of holidaying in Spain or Portugal are among the cheapest in the traditional holiday destinations, with cheaper accommodation, meals and wine for example.

Beyond finding the cheapest country, to save money on car hire book well in advance.  Car hire companies’ prices often go up closer to the date of travel, similar to budget flight business models, depending on demand. Anna Wolfsteiner, Managing Director of Holiday Autos Germany and Austria also pointed out that if you want to secure the preferred model for your family size you should book ahead.

Despite suffering the most economically, Emmanouella Vassilakis reckons Greece’s tourism has not been hit as badly as other business with only a 7% reduction in car hire demand: “Road conditions are getting better and better and the arrival of low cost airlines has helped”. Improvements to the roads mean that you can get now from Kavala to Thessaloniki in 50 minutes, a journey that used to take two hours. Luckily for tourists, investment in Greece’s transport system came before the financial crash that led to a series of strikes during the peak summer season and has seen a reduction in car hire costs.

However, she admitted that it is hard to get credit to operate the ‘buyback’ model, whereby companies buy the cars from manufacturers who then agree to buy them back at a fixed price after an allotted time. This means they have to take more risk by purchasing the cars outright and selling them on afterwards, often to smaller car hire firms who lease older, less good quality cars.

Over in South Africa, they are enjoying a new found confidence after the Football World Cup, making 2010 the “best year ever” for Europcar South Africa International according to CEO Dawn Nathan-Jones – “infrastructure and road structure improvements caused a huge demand which we underestimated.”

Finally, Nick Harwood of Europcar UK reckons plenty of people are staying in the country for holidays and expects an increase in car hire by people who economise by selling their second car – perhaps so they can afford that all important holiday overseas.