Electric Car Rental in United States
Electric Car Rental
As the EV market continues to grow, a number of major automakers are ramping up production and expanding their rental services to include electric vehicles. General Motors plans to deliver 400,000 electric cars in North America by 2023, while Ford has committed to deliver 600,000 by 2023. Electric car rentals offer potential consumers an extended test drive of an electric car. They are also seen as an important driver of President Biden’s 2030 plan.
As electric vehicle adoption grows, the availability of EVs in the rental fleet will make it easier for consumers to get into an EV. According to Plug In America executive director Joel Levin, EV rentals can cut carbon emissions by up to two-thirds, thereby reducing their impact on local air quality and climate change. Despite the benefits of EV car rental, most car rental aggregator websites do not include filters that help identify EV rental cars. These customers will have to use rental agencies to find EVs.
Several experts in the industry discussed the challenges in implementing electric car rental in the United States. The market is highly competitive and fragmented. There are a number of domestic and international key players in the market, each with its own growth strategy. With rising EV sales, new technology developments, and growing consumer interest, the APAC region is projected to lead the way in EV rental. The electric car rental market in the United States is expected to grow at a rate of 15% during the forecast period.
Electric Car Rental in United States
While Hertz is out front with its electric car rental program, Enterprise is a more conservative company. The privately held company based in St. Louis began participating in a multi-year study sponsored by the Electrification Coalition, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that advocates for the adoption of EVs. Its efforts to increase EV adoption have slowed, but they are still in the early stages.
Although the number of EVs on rental fleets remains small, Hertz is planning to expand its Tesla offerings to at least 20 markets this year. By year-end, it plans to have EVs in forty markets. By 2024, it hopes to have 30% of its fleet electric. While automakers have traditionally purchased large numbers of electric cars to fleets to help unload used cars and support higher production, their business model has changed. Another way to increase EV rental is to expand peer-to-peer car-sharing platforms like Turo.
In addition to Hertz, other car rental companies are beginning to offer electric vehicles. Hertz, which owns Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Alamo Rent-A-Car, and National Car Rental, is one of the largest. Hertz recently announced that it was adding thousands of EVs to its fleet and plans to rent out the cars to customers. It also announced a deal with Tom Brady, a former Michigan quarterback, to help market its new venture. It also plans to make at least 50,000 Tesla vehicles available for Uber drivers.
Hertz is also introducing new features in its rental cars to attract customers. In October of last year, the car rental company announced that it would buy a hundred thousand Tesla models. This announcement is the largest step forward for electric car rental in North America. By the end of this year, Hertz plans to have 20 percent of its fleet powered by electricity. The company plans to offer half of its Tesla fleet to ride-sharing app Uber, which could double its fleet size within three years.