In 2013, Enterprise Holdings conducted a survey to get a better understanding of the relationship between renting a car and vehicle ownership. They did it again in 2015, and most recently in 2017, with all results confirming that customers in every age group rent cars as a means of testing those they are considering for purchase.

Rental Cars The Ultimate Test-Drive

Millennials in particular (those now aged between 25-40) believe that car ownership is essential to daily life. They would apparently rather be deprived of social media, lose sleep or skip meals than have to go through life without a vehicle.

Almost 30% of new cars are purchased by this generation of consumers, far more than their Gen X predecessors.
Almost 54% of millennials purchased a car in the United States in the last two years – and 68% of them were influenced by their experience with a rental vehicle.

The younger the purchaser, the more likely they are to be swayed by a feature or experience they had with a rental vehicle, but almost 70% of customers in all age groups suggested that their rental experience had a bearing on their future choice of vehicle.

Through the car hire market, many customers are introduced to makes and models they may not have considered before, and almost half experience some type of new feature or technology when they rent a car.

The Enterprise surveys include customers of National Car Rental and Alamo Rent A Car, and the results can be applied with some measure of confidence to the entire car rental industry. The bottom line is that the Baby Boomer love affair with the car might have skipped a generation, but has been reignited with a passion by a group of Millennials who can’t imagaine getting to work or going on vacation without one.

The car rental industry has traditionally focused on meeting the needs of business and holiday travellers. The Enterprise surveys, however, reveal that a significant share of the market is to be found among those who are looking for an extended test drive.

This will undoubtedly influence the selection of vehicles available for hire in the future, with car rental companies continuing to diversify their fleets to provide clients with increasingly interesting, and innovative, options.

Tourist holiday frauds bookings are increasing in the UK and the victims are deprived of millions. In the previous year, the number of holidaymakers who got tricked rose to almost 6,000, with a total loss of 7.2 million pounds. Year after year, the reported cases have increased in number, jumping nearly 20 percent annually.

The most common tourist holiday frauds, according to a report by the City of London Police’s National Fraud Intelligence, are connected to airline tickets sales, online booking of accommodations, and timeshare sales. There are also reports of a few instances of car hire frauds.

Many airline tickets victims are tricked to believe they are booking a legitimate flight. Later, after the payment is made, the victims realise that they purchased fake tickets, or the tickets never turned up.

The fake flights that were targeted in 2016 were those that were bound to the Indian Sub-Continent and Africa. The fraudsters duped mostly the families and groups of friends, knowing that they do not have enough knowledge about the travel industry’s strict regulations.

The deceivers were also taking advantage of the internet to trick the holidaymakers when booking holiday accommodations. They set up fake websites, gain unauthorised access to legitimate accounts, and posted their advertisements on these accounts and on the social media. Once payment was made, the fraudsters disappear.

People who were joining religious or sports trips were also not spared from these frauds, because usually tickets are limited, that resulted in higher prices. They were left with no choice but to take the bite.

Timeshares, or vacation ownership, refers to holiday houses owned by several people, and used by each for an agreed period. The money involved in timeshare frauds are higher than other frauds, with each victim often being ripped off tens of thousands of pounds.

Car hires frauds often involved hidden charges, insurance frauds, and being asked to pay extra for “missing seats” or any damage to the hired vehicle. Victims find out only about the hidden charges when their credit card bill reaches their mail.

It is during the summer holidays and the month of December that these cases of fraud become common; and the age groups affected range from 20 to 40 years old. On an average, each victim loses 1,200 pounds to fraudsters. Besides the money involved, the duped holidaymakers suffer emotionally; they feel so bad about what took place that even their health gets affected.

To avoid tourist holiday frauds, tourists are advised to be vigilant, stay safe when conducting business online. When making payments, use only credit/debit card and make sure the websites are secured and have an SSL certificates.