Car rental outfits head in a green direction - Demand grows for fuel efficiency
WASHINGTON -- Faced with sluggish rentals of sport utility vehicles and eco-conscious consumers demanding cars with higher gas mileage, auto rental companies have scrambled in recent months to stock their fleets with more fuel-efficient vehicles -- including cutting-edge hybrid vehicles and flex-fuel cars that run mainly on ethanol. More....
By John Donnelly and Matthew Spolar, Globe Correspondent | August 9, 2007

Airport Car Rental Fees Raised
Customers renting cars at Miami International Airport will now be paying more to offset rising construction costs for a $370 million car-rental facility, Miami Today reports. Miami-Dade
commissioners recently raised the $3.25-per-day customer-facility charge to $4 during the construction period beginning in October and to no more than $4.60 once the facility is operational in 2011. The fee would increase by 25 cents every five years after the facility opens.
Auto Rental News - August 15, 2007

GEM Rental Company Opens
Since mid-June, Red Rock Electric Co. has rented neighborhood electric vehicles (NEVs) on Tybee Island in Georgia.
August 15, 2007

Dollar, Thrifty Expand Prepaid Toll System
Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group, Inc., the parent company of Dollar Rent A Car and Thrifty Car Rental, recently announced the expansion of Rent A Toll prepaid toll service to the metro Denver market.
August 14, 2007

Alamo Introduces Self-Service Kiosks
Alamo Rent A Car recently launched its self-service, touch-screen kiosks which allows customers with a valid driver's license, major credit card and an existing reservation to skip the rental counter and check in directly.
August 14, 2007

Synopsis of Avis Budget's Q2 Earnings Conference Call
Avis Budget Group reported second quarter revenues of $1.5 billion. Year-to-date pre-tax income was $44 million and second quarter pre-tax income was $38 million.
August 22, 2007

Rental Driver Watching GPS, Not Road, Crashes
This week a car full of American tourists crashed in Victoria, British Columbia, because the driver was looking for their hotel using a GPS, according to police reports as reported in the Times Colonist.
August 22, 2007

Advantage Announces Franchising Expansion
Advantage Rent A Car announced today the launch of its franchising program.
The plans for franchising were announced at the 2007 Car Rental Show in Las Vegas in June. Groundwork for a successful program was laid earlier in the year when Peter Fritz joined the company as director of franchising operations.
August 22, 2007

Fugitive Arrested in $500,000 Car Rental Scam
Moshe "Sanny" Assoulin was arrested in connection to fraudulent automobile insurance claims that were allegedly submitted to car rental and insurance companies.
August 29, 2007

Enterprise Establishes VE85/FlexFuel Branch in Cincinnati
The car rental company will now offer
August 29, 2007

Hertz Launches Hourly Rentals in Boston
Hertz recently launched Hertz Hourly Rentals at its Boston Park Plaza location.
The program requires no fuel charge, application fees or charges for cancelling or changing a reservation. Hertz Hourly Rentals also include unlimited mileage and 24-hour emergency roadside assistance.
September 21, 2007

Enterprise Receives Patent For Automated Rental Management System
Enterprise Rent-A-Car recently announced that its parent company, The Crawford Group, Inc., has been issued a patent from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office related to its Automated Rental Management System (ARMS). This patent is the product of a significant investment in resources, initiative and intellectual capital, the company reports.
September 25, 2007

Thermeon, Hertz to Partner
September 26, 2007
Thermeon Worldwide plc recently announced that it has signed a global, ten year service agreement with Hertz Corporation for the use of its CARS+ Internet product, an independent vehicle rental software service.

Car Rental Show 2008
March 4, 2008
Car and Truck rental conferencer and expo

Hertz Launches Simply Wheelz in Europe
March 05, 2008
Following the launch of Simply Wheelz in Orlando this past August, the Hertz Corporation announces the launch of its standalone company Simply Wheelz in Europe. Car rental customers traveling from the United Kingdom and Germany to Alicante and Malaga in Spain can use the new service.

Dollar Thrifty Q4 Loss Expands
February 29, 2008
Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group Inc. posted a wider fourth quarter loss, hurt by lower consumer demand as well as a softer used car market, the company reports.

Enterprise, VeraSun Energy Promote Renewable Fuels
March 05, 2008
Enterprise Rent-A-Car and ethanol producer VeraSun Energy Corp., recently announced the first VE85/FlexFuel rental branch location in South Dakota.

Fox Rent A Car Expands
March 11, 2008
Fox Rent A Car is set to open a corporate location in Salt Lake City on April 1, 2008. The move is a part of a company-wide expansion strategy that included the opening of a corporate location at Seattle airport in August 2007.

Credit Reports Legally Checked Without Permission
March 12, 2008
Federal law permits companies to check credit reports under several circumstances, and they don’t always need to have the customer’s consent.

Business Travelers Told to Trim Expenses
March 12, 2008
Faced with a weakening economy, more companies are targeting travel and entertainment expenses USA Today reports.

Enterprise Announces 2007 Auction Achievement Awards
March 12, 2008
Enterprise Rent-A-Car recently announced its 2007 Auction Achievement Awards. Recipients included Manheim Auctions in markets across the U.S.

Hertz Insiders Buy Stocks
March 12, 2008
Three top insiders at Hertz Global Holdings Inc. snapped up shares on Feb. 29, one week after the rental car provider forecast 2008 profit below Wall Street's expectations and warned that restructuring efforts would result in job cuts, Business Week reports.

Enterprise Implements Energy-Saving Rental Transaction System
April 23, 2008
Enterprise Rent-A-Car this summer will complete a multi-year rollout of a new rental transaction system that connects the reservations, billing and reporting operations of more than 7,000.

Enterprise Responds to TTC Strike
April 23, 2008
Enterprise Rent-A-Car recently announced that it will help alleviate the burden of the potential Toronto transit strike by offering to match or beat any competitor's rates for the full duration of the work stoppage.

SFO Implements Green Rental Car Program
April 23, 2008
The San Francisco Airport Commission and Mayor Gavin Newsom approved a new lease structure on April 15 that provides financial incentives to those car rental agencies that ensure a baseline of rentals of environmentally efficient vehicles.

Thrifty Adds 4 New Franchised Locations
April 23, 2008
Thrifty Car Rental, a subsidiary of Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group, Inc., continues its expansion, recently adding four new franchised locations to its network of U.S. locations.

Avis Budget Recognized for Support of Women-Owned Businesses
April 23, 2008
For the eighth consecutive year, Avis Budget Group, Inc., a provider of vehicle rental services, has been named one of America's Top Corporations for Women's Business Enterprises by the Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC).

Northwest Airlines Adds Avis to WorldPerks
April 23, 2008
Northwest Airlines recently announced that it has added Avis Rent A Car to WorldPerks, allowing members to earn additional miles while saving up to 25 percent off Avis rentals in the United States and Canada.

Man Stole, Planted GPS Devices in Rental Cars
May 28, 2008
A 30-year-old man has been indicted on charges of stealing rental cars by installing global positioning system devices in rented vehicles, tracking their location after they are returned to rental companies, and then stealing them by using copied keys, police said, the Associated Press reports.

Enterprise Foundation Donates $100,000 to Earthquake Relief in China
May 28, 2008
The Enterprise Rent-A-Car Foundation has donated $100,000 to the American Red Cross to assist in the relief efforts in the aftermath of the earthquake that shook China on May 12, the company reports.

Dollar Thrifty Names Scott Thompson New CFO
May 28, 2008
Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group Inc., parent company of the Dollar Rent A Car and Thrifty Car Rental brands, recently named Scott L. Thompson as senior executive vice president and chief financial officer.