Europcar to launch ‘pay as you go’ car hire
Europcar is to launch pay as you go car hire with the UK’s first hire cars fitted with meters.
The meters will take £1 coins allowing customers to pay as they go rather than pay for the time of the rental.
They will be charged at a rate of £1.04p per mile and with a minimum load charged at £2 per journey.
Each car will be supplied with £10 worth of mileage on the meter and once this has been used, the customer will need to feed the meter according to the miles they anticipate travelling.
In order to avoid people breaking down when the meter runs out of money, Europcar will be fitting change machines in each of its 200 locations across the UK and for home deliveries, bags of pound coins will be offered in exchange for notes.
Marketing director Catriona Lougher said: “We already offer rentals by the hour, delivery and collection and the UK’s widest choice of rental cars and soon customers will have the choice to take one of our metered vehicles which will prove really cost-effective for short journeys.”
The vehicles fitted with meters will be available from key urban locations from April 1, 2010, allowing the business to test the service throughout 2009 at selected branches in London, Manchester and Birmingham.
Lougher added: "We’d be a fool not to test this concept on our customers fully before our launch in 2010 but really hope this will prove to be a way forward for urban car rental.”
By Bev Fearis
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Airlines suspend Madagascar services following unrest and army revolt
Airbnb eyes a loyalty program but details remain under wraps
Qatar Airways offers flexible payment options for European travellers
Air Mauritius reduces frequencies to Europe and Asia for the holiday season
Major rail disruptions around and in Berlin until early 2026