Rental car customers continue to be less satisfied, according to J.D. Power & Associates.
In its 12th annual Rental Car Satisfaction Study, which included the opinions of nearly 6,000 car renters during a one-year period ending in September, customer satisfaction dropped 17 points to 750 on a 1,000-point scale.
The lower score, according to industry experts, is based on several factors. Travelers are facing longer wait time, reduced availability in new cars and overall frustration in the travel industry.
Ironically, the four biggest car rental agencies —Hertz Corp., Avis Rent-A-Car System, National Car Rental System and Enterprise Rent-A-Car all scored higher than the industry average.
For the fourth consecutive year, Enterprise Rent-A-Car was the highest-rated car brand in the study.
The satisfaction rating is based on costs and fees, the pickup process, the rental car, the return process, the reservation process and shuttle bus or van transfers to rental facilities. In particular, the study detailed a 22-minute average wait time to pick up a car was longer than other wait-time aspects of travel, including hotel check-in, airport security and retrieving checked luggage.
The overall decline, however, largely follows a drop in satisfaction with all the aspects of travel, according to the study.
"Rental car customers, in particular, are being faced with rising fuel prices and decreased availability of new rental vehicles, as major automotive manufacturers have reduced their rental fleet sales," said Jim Gaz, J.D. Power and Associates senior director of travel and entertainment.
"While the rental car industry faces its own specific challenges, customer satisfaction may also be influenced by the snowball effect from frustrations consumers are facing with the entire travel experience."
Enterprise is widening the gap from its competitors in satisfaction and gets high marks for its cost and Web site functionality, according to Gaz.
