Car Hire Companies in Malaga Unite Against the Crisis
May 27th, 2009 by admin
A shortage of hire cars in Spain drives up the costs for tourist who want to rent a car in Malaga and is leading to a complete lack of cars in the worst cases.
Other popular holiday destinations in Spain such as Alicante, Mallorca and Murcia have also been badly hit as car hire companies have been forced to reduce their fleet sizes significantly in order to decrease costs in the face of the credit crunch. Due to the recession many mayor car rental companies in Malaga as well as smaller companies cut back on vehicles which leads to inflated costs for holidaymakers.
The shortage of stock in the car hire industry in Malaga is down to a number of factors, all of which are tied to the current recession. Many car hire companies on hte Costa del Sol have been hit by a lack of affordable finance from banks, which prevented them from buying new stock. Other companies in Andalusia have been selling nearly-new cars to pay off loans, but are unable to replace them without finance.
“Many regular visitors have been left without a rental car this summer”, says a spokesman of a group of local car hire companies in Malaga. “In previous years our customers used to book a couple of days in advance, or arranged the car hire on the spot.”
The largest companies may have stock, but at a price. Local companies often have better prices, but if you leave it late many will be out of stock. Things have changed dramatically this year, and in case people find a car for the summer the price will be at least double the price they paid last year.
“The only way for local car hire companies in Malaga to guarantee availability over peak periods is working together. Collaborating will enable the individual companies to optimize there occupancy figures which in the end is beneficial for everyone. We must learn to see other companies as a possible solution for our customers in case we do not have availability and not as a competitor.”