CNY rush drives up car rental business

Popular Rent A Car’s Guillemard Road office. It has expanded its fleet and raised its rates by 5 per cent. — ST PHOTO: ALPHONSUS CHERN By Lin Wenjian

In the last three years, Mr Brian Cheong, 35, has been renting a car for his family of five during the Chinese New Year period, often booking it two to three weeks in advance.

Last week, he called his usual car rental company in Sin Ming Drive, only to be told that its entire fleet had been booked. The insurance specialist is now on the lookout for a company that still has cars, to avoid the hassle of taking cabs during the Chinese New Year.

Soaring certificate of entitlement (COE) premiums have delayed the purchase of a car for many, and the recent raising of cab fares has made it more expensive to visit relatives and friends during the New Year which starts on Jan 23.

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MORE ECONOMICAL TO RENT ONE

‘They can now have the freedom and comfort of a car for the cost of about six taxi trips a day. Families easily make this many trips doing their visits in the ChineseNewYear.’

Ms Vanessa Ang, Hertz’s senior sales and marketing executive, on how the recent cab fare hike would make it more economical to rent a car for the festive season

But as people still need to get around, they have made a beeline for rental cars. Rental car companies such as Hertz Rent-A-Car Singapore say they started taking calls as early as two months ago; in previous years, bookings stepped up only two weeks to a month in advance.

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