Corporate car rental is gaining in popularity in recent years, and for good reason. It helps reduce costs and risks and improves your company's environmental impact. Here are some ways this form of fleet benefits your business.
How long term car rental works
Long term car rental is precisely what it says on the tin.
It's a convenient alternative to spending tens of thousands on buying a
vehicle, or getting a loan to purchase an entire fleet.
Instead, you rent one or more vehicles as per your needs and
pay a fixed fee for as long as you need them. The fees are usually weekly or
monthly. If you rent long term, you often qualify for conveniences such as free
maintenance. Rental agreements also typically include complimentary insurance.
Renting long term is often more affordable than short term.
Car hires offer additional services or discounts to loyal renters, and you
might further negotiate your agreement the longer you stick with it.
There is typically a minimum contract duration for those who
want long term benefits. It's usually six months, though sometimes it can be a
single month or two. You should inquire with the car hires in your business
area what span of services they offer and how large a territory they service.
For instance, a car hire in Sydney might provide vehicles to only the business centre, or to specific suburbs, etc. Check their available pickup and return locations. Also check what vehicle types they offer - passenger, commercial, long-distance heavy haulers, etc.
Flexible contracts
Contractual flexibility is one of the best-known benefits of long term car rental services. Your business isn't tied down to a fixed commitment, so you can adapt to circumstances at a moment's notice.
Long-term car rentals usually have convenient and manageable
payment plans. Typically, these entail monthly instalments. That makes your
budgeting and forward planning miles easier.
If your resources or requirements change along the way, just
return the vehicle. Since you weren't on a fixed contract, you wouldn't incur a
penalty for terminating it early.
Likewise, if times turn hard for your company and you lose employees, long term rentals are an easy cost to cut away. Simply return the surplus vehicles instead of wasting money on maintaining an unused standing fleet.
A greater choice of vehicles
When you have to purchase a whole fleet of vehicles for your
business, it gets very expensive very fast. That is to say your choices are
limited by budget. When you need to add or replace a vehicle, you are likewise
limited by what you already have. After all, you have to maintain consistency
in your representation, so you would probably want to buy the same again.
With a long-term rental, that's not a concern anymore. Rental companies offer a wide range of vehicles, and you can choose based on function rather than branding. Depending on what your business needs at a given time, you can rent city cars, dual control cars, refrigerated vehicles of various capacities, minibuses, and even overseas rentals.
Season-specific arrangements
The whole point of car rentals is being flexible in your
operations. This means adapting to the ebb and flow of your business volume
throughout the year. With a season-specific agreement, you can rent based on
practical predictions.
Forecast the times of year when you will need a larger fleet and budget for it. Predict when you might expect significant downtime and cut back on the vehicle expenses at that time. This approach lets you both streamline operations and improve overall cash flow.
Full service and maintenance
We mentioned this benefit further up. It actually comes in two forms: service history and future services. When you take out a corporate car rental agreement, the vehicles will have a full history of service and maintenance. You can be safe in the knowledge that all repairs and touch-ups have been addressed before the vehicle made it to you.
Furthermore, you will save enormous funds on fleet upkeep
for the duration of the renting. The car hire will schedule maintenance under
your agreement. If the rented vehicle breaks down, you may even get a
complimentary one. Ask if that benefit is available when signing the rental
agreement.
Likewise, you will save on operational costs and
administration. As we previously mentioned, you can return a rented vehicle
when you no longer need it. This cuts down on fleet downtime and unnecessary
expenses that accompany it.
To sum up, long term car rental is a multi-beneficial fleet management strategy. It is financially sensible, letting you eliminate
standing fleet maintenance costs during downtime. You can arrange your rental
agreement according to your own business seasons, and choose from a wide array
of vehicles.
Car hires usually cover wide geographical areas, and rental
contracts include insurance, service, and maintenance. Renting for longer
periods of time affords you further benefits, and even ending an arrangement
early costs you far less than purchasing and maintaining a traditional fleet.
