Maui Car Rental

We have set our sights on the Island of Maui again. Our content development team has requested fresh photographs for our new Maui car rental service for the airport. We’ll be comparing service providers (Avis, Budget, Dollar, Enterprise, Hertz, Thrifty) and gauging them by timeliness, price, cleanliness and customer service.

Our travel agent recommended MCR as they offer free extra drivers and exclusive discounted rates with seven major rental agencies. When I questioned her reasoning our agent explained how this travel trick works and no promo codes or special memberships are required. She also assured me that Hawaiian Travel Co. has been helping her clients save money for years.

You won’t believe our accommodations either. Ground floor beachfront in Kihei. This will be the perfect home-base for all of the rental car excursions we’ll be doing. And yes, we’ll have Jeeps in Maui too. If we come across and other discount travel tips we’ll share them upon our return.

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Top Tip: Discount US Car Rental

This under-the-radar car rental consolidator has only been providing discounted car rentals in the United States since fall 2016. Their parent company, Aloha Rents Discount Hawaii Car Rental, has been offering quick, cheap, simple car rentals for the Hawaiian Islands since 2005.

When asked, Discount US Car Rental manager, Rob Harrison stated, “their most common rental vehicle is the compact class. Compact cars are economical to operate and a great choice for 1-2 persons.”

We recently used Discount US Car Rental for a short business trip to the San Francisco Bay Area. Our chosen compact automobile was rented from Avis. The price we obtained was less than booking directly on http://www.avis.com. I personally searched on Expedia, Kayak and Hotwire to no avail. I always like to verify that I am getting the lowest price on the internet for my car rentals. Saving hard earned dollars is a necessity at HIB.

Visit www.discountuscarrental.com for more information on their rent-a-car service

2014 Rental Car Satisfaction Study by JDPower

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif.: 11 November 2014 — Higher costs and longer waiting times have leveled off the upward trend in rental car satisfaction the industry has experienced since 2009, according to the J.D. Power 2014 North America Rental Car Satisfaction StudySM released today. – See more at: http://www.jdpower.com/press-releases/2014-north-america-rental-car-satisfaction-study

Enterprise Ranks Highest in Satisfying Rental Car Customers

Now in its 19th year, the study measures overall customer satisfaction with rental cars at airport locations by examining six factors (listed in order of importance): cost and fees; pick-up process; return process; rental car; shuttle bus/van; and reservation process.

Overall customer satisfaction with their rental car experience averages 774 on a 1,000-point scale in 2014, a 1-point drop from 2013 when satisfaction was at its highest level since the study’s current methodology was adopted in 2006. The plateau in satisfaction follows consistent improvements since 2009 when satisfaction averaged 733.

The 2014 study finds that the price of a rental car has increased by an average of $5 per day from 2013. Additionally, wait times are longer across all aspects of the rental process, from the shuttle bus or van ride to returning the vehicle, compared with 2013.

On average, customers wait 43.4 minutes in total for the vehicle pick-up and return process, and shuttle bus/van experiences. Business customers experience slightly shorter wait times than leisure/personal customers (41.5 minutes vs. 44.3 minutes, respectively). Timeliness of service, an important component of satisfaction, drops between 18 and 58 points when customers wait longer than five minutes during any of these steps in the rental process.

A simple smile from employees at the rental car agency makes the waiting period seem shorter for customers. On average, customers who are greeted with a smile from the rental car staff indicate they wait 16.8 minutes to pick up their vehicle, while those who are not greeted with a smile indicate they wait 25.7 minutes, on average.

“Customers have experienced cost increases for airlines and hotels, but hotels can demonstrate they’re adding value commensurate with the increased costs; customers aren’t able to see that added value with airlines and rental car agencies,” said Rick Garlick, global travel and hospitality practice lead at J.D. Power. “Time is always important, specifically for business customers who are under constraints to be somewhere at a certain time.”

Satisfaction among business customers, who wait an average of four minutes less to pick up their rental car than leisure/personal customers, improves to 772 in 2014 from 771 in 2013, while satisfaction among leisure/personal customers declines to 774 from 777. The decline in leisure/personal satisfaction, coupled with the increase in business satisfaction closes the gap between the two groups to 2 points from its greatest difference of 21 points in 2010.

KEY FINDINGS

• Overall satisfaction is highest among customers in Gen Y—those born between 1977 and 1994—at 780, compared with an average of 775 among all other generational groups combined. That finding counters the prevailing assumption that younger customers are more demanding and harder to satisfy than those who are older.
• In the business segment, satisfaction is highest among Gen Y customers at 788. In the leisure/personal segment, satisfaction is highest among Boomer (born 1946-1964) and Gen X (1965-1976) customers at 778 each.
• Business customers demonstrate higher levels of both loyalty and advocacy, as 36 percent say they “definitely will” rent from the same brand again and 32 percent “definitely will” recommend the rental car brand. In comparison, 26 percent of leisure/personal customers say they “definitely will” rent from the same rental car brand and 27 percent “definitely will” recommend the brand to family and friends.
• When selecting a business rental car company, 15 percent of customers make their choice on price alone, while 10 percent indicate they don’t consider price at all.
• Overall satisfaction among the 19 percent of customers who are “price buyers”—those who select their rental car brand primarily for a lower price—is 740, compared with 844 among those who choose their brand based on features and benefits.

2014 North America Rental Car Satisfaction Rankings

Enterprise ranks highest in satisfaction among rental car companies, with a score of 805, performing particularly well in all six factors. National ranks second with a score of 797, followed by Alamo and Hertz with 776 each.

The 2014 North America Rental Car Satisfaction Study is based on responses gathered between September 2013 and August 2014 from more than 12,308 evaluations from business and leisure/personal customers who rented a vehicle at an airport location between August 2013 and August 2014.

2009 Rental Car Satisfaction Study by JDPower

Following two consecutive years of considerable declines in customer satisfaction, the domestic rental car industry appears to be making a comeback, at least in the court of public opinion, if not on the companies’ balance sheets. According to a recent J.D. Power and Associates survey of nearly 13,000 customers who rented a car at a domestic airport, renters are seeing reduced fees compared to recent years, contributing significantly to the increase in overall satisfaction.

The 2009 U.S. Rental Car Satisfaction Study reveals that the industry’s recent focus on containing operating costs by “right-sizing” fleets to meet changing consumer demand and extending the service life of their vehicles is allowing rental car companies to delay orders for replacements, thus enabling many companies to decrease their rental fees. However, in a number of locations, reductions in rental fees have been offset by increased excise taxes imposed by local and state governments.

“The rental car industry has tried to dissuade attempts to increase taxation on rental car customers and has made efforts to increase consumer awareness and understanding of these fees and their origin, particularly since these fees may be confusing to customers when they receive their final bill,” said Paula Sonkin, vice president of the travel practice at J.D. Power and Associates. “Customers can avoid some of this confusion by educating themselves about the excise fees and taxes that are imposed upon rental car companies in the areas where they are traveling. It’s also particularly important for customers to understand that these fees and taxes apply to all of the rental car companies associated with a particular airport.”

According to the study, overall satisfaction for the domestic rental car industry averages 733 on a 1,000-point scale in 2009, almost equal to its performance in 2008, when it achieved an index score of 734. In comparison, overall satisfaction declined by 16 points in 2007 and 17 points in 2008.

Now in its 14th year, the Car Rental Satisfaction Study measures overall customer satisfaction with renting cars at airports by examining six factors (listed in order of importance):

• costs and fees
• pick-up process
• rental car
• return process
• reservation process
• shuttle bus/van

Highlights from the study include:

• Enterprise ranks highest in customer satisfaction among rental car companies for a sixth consecutive year and performs particularly well in all six factors. Enterprise is followed in the rankings by National and Hertz, respectively.
• In particular, National has improved considerably from 2008, by 15 index points and two rank positions in 2009. Hertz performs particularly well in shuttling customers to and from the airport.
• The incidence of even a single problem can have a notable negative effect on overall satisfaction. On average, satisfaction among customers who experience a problem is nearly 140 points lower than satisfaction among customers who don’t have a problem during their rental car experience.
• Providing a highly satisfying rental car experience has a strong positive effect on customer loyalty levels. Among customers with satisfaction scores averaging 900 or higher, approximately two-thirds indicate that they “definitely will” recommend the rental car company to others and “definitely will” rent from the same company again. These rates are more than twice those of customers with satisfaction scores averaging between 750 and 899 and four times those of customers with satisfaction averaging between 600 and 749.

About the Study
The 2009 Rental Car Satisfaction Study is based on more than 12,900 evaluations from business and leisure travelers who rented a vehicle at an airport location between September 2008 and October 2009. The study was fielded between October 2008 and October 2009. This study is in no way specifically for Car Rental in Hawaii. If you are interested, visit this Hawaii Car Rental Guide from AlohaRents.

Launch of Big Island Car Rental Service

This recently launched service offers car rentals in Hilo and Kailua-Kona on the Big Island of Hawaii.

The Big Island, is divided in half by five volcanoes. There are two distinct sides to The Big Island: Hilo and Kailua-Kona. Some airlines fly directly from the Western United States to these two Hawaiian cities. For your convenience, they provide discount rental cars at both Hilo (ITO) and Kailua-Kona (KOA) airports.

Excellent rates on Jeeps, economy, compact and vehicles of all sizes. Each of their cars comes with AC, standard safety features, and an automatic transmission.

By booking with them, you’ll save money for your trip. Additionally, there is no obligation, if your plans change, you will never be charged a cancellation fee.

With partners such as Dollar, Thrifty and Enterprise, they bring the Lowest-Priced Rates on the Internet. They recommend you reserve early to secure the car you want. Fill-out their no obligation request form and see how much money you can save with Cheap Kona Car Rental.

Car Rental Deals in the Hawaiian Islands

Recently, our friends were invited to a family wedding on Maui.  They, as we all are these days, are unsettled by the expense of the trip, so they called us to ask for any advice we might be able to offer in the way of cheap rental cars on Maui.  They are flying into Kahului Maui Airport for a rental car, so we suggested they reserve their car ahead of time. They’ll be able to attend the celebrations in style while saving enough money to do some sightseeing during their free time.

This conversation with our friends got us to thinking that this advice fits all Hawaii car rentals, on all the islands.  We’ve learned we can save money by staying away from the traditional rental agencies such as Dollar, Thrifty, Budget, Avis or Hertz. The online discount car rental agencies are much more affordable.  Yet, we get the same car as if we’d rented from one of the big companies.

When we are looking for a discount vehicle rental in Kona or Hilo on the Big Island, money-saving transportation on Molokai, or a Kauai car rental, we look into the discount agencies when we hire a rental car.  The same goes for finding cheap Honolulu rental cars for a crazy vacation on Waikiki Beach. We always decide we want to make a trip to the north shore, and we find the best deals for our money are found online for a rental car on Oahu.

As well, the cheap airline websites offer great deals. We have found great deals for flights and lodging together on one site. So, as we suggested to our Lahaina-bound friends, we like to save all the money we can on getting there so we can take full advantage of the “aloha” the Hawaiian Islands have to offer.

Discount Rental Cars in Kauai

I was recently called to Kauai on business regarding a condo I own in the Poipu area. Of course, one always needs a vehicle in Kauai unless you are staying in Lihue near the airport. I typically just rent a car from Enterprise. Not this time, a friend told me about a new service which offers discounted rental cars in Kauai. I visited their website and submitted a rental request. Wow! I was surprised to learn that their price was much less than renting direct. I saved over 25% and was thrilled. I chose a mid-size car because I had decided to bring my new folding bike along. It was a perfect fit for the back of the 4 door Jeep rental with the two back seats folded down.

Discount Hawaii Car Rental in Honolulu

Our pick, you guessed it, AlohaRents.com is the hands-down winner. We requested rate quotes from the 3 big cheap car rental companies in Hawaii. We chose Honolulu to be specific. Only because the largest fleets on the islands are housed there. The three companies we selected were: Car Rental Hawaii, Discount Hawaii Car Rental and the winner, Aloha Rents. The car we selected was an economy model. AlohaRents.com also offered bonus benefits, such as extra drivers at no charge and young drivers for free.

Waikiki Jeep Rental

We just returned from a photo shoot at Waikiki on the Island of Oahu. The vehicle rental personnel were very helpful and kind.  They sent us to a cool place on Oahu’s North Shore for our day off. The majority of work we completed was shot at Diamond Head near Waikiki. We spent a total of three days and actually brought back over 800 photos.

Some of the Jeeps we rented were used in the images this time. So, our thanks go out to Hawaii Jeeps. If you need an ATV, stop by one of their 3 locales in Waikiki Beach.

Rental Cars in Florida

A different assignment this time. Off to Florida! We have been invited to take part in a new car advertisement being filmed in the Florida Keys. We’ll arrive in Miami Florida and the girls will drive us down to the southern most tip, Kew West, Florida. The car was comped to us by our friends at Florida Car Rental which is operated by Florida Sun Car Rentals. It’s not like we could not afford their typical discounted rates! We are using a large E-150 van for our large group of travelers. I’ll let you know in the next customer review how the auto rental works-out. We are not to worried. We have used Sunshine Rent a Car for years. Long before they were acquired by the parent company of Florida Car Rentals.