A box with an Aug. 4 Business article incorrectly described Hertz as the largest auto-rental company. Enterprise Rent-a-Car is the largest in North America in rental revenue and fleet size, although Hertz has the largest share of rentals at airport locations.
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Car-Rental Policy Not Universal
Barry Daniels greets a customer at Reagan National Airport, where the minimum age for renting a car is still 25.
(By Tetona Dunlap -- The Washington Post)
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Avis and Budget have a $110-a-day surcharge -- "hefty," McGowan called it -- for under-25 drivers in New York.
The surcharge often ends up being higher than the daily rental rate charged on economy-class cars, said industry analyst Neil Abrams, president of Abrams Consulting Group Inc.
"So a $25 surcharge can almost double the cost of the rental," he said.
The surcharge could be eliminated if President Bush signs the federal highway bill that includes a ban on vicarious liability, industry experts say.
Yesterday, younger drivers welcomed the new policy.
Ryan Newcomer, returning a Budget car at Dulles Airport, said turning 26 has made his life much easier because he now has his choice of rentals. "Now I use whatever is cheaper on the Internet," said Newcomer, from Salt Lake City, who travels as a manager for a residential alarm company.
Meanwhile, Hertz -- Avis's longtime top competitor -- is still renting only to drivers 25 and older. But a Hertz spokesman said the company is studying Cendant's move.
Some Avis and Budget competitors reacted to the new minimum-age policy with a yawn. "This is a non-event," said Charles Pulley, spokesman for Vanguard Car Rental USA Inc., which owns National Car Rental and Alamo Rent A Car LLC. "We've had this policy forever."
Avis and Budget rolled out the policy as they announced a general price increase of $5 a day and $20 a week on rentals, starting Sept. 10.
Staff writers Larry Liebert, Jena Moreno and Ellen McCarthy contributed to this report.
