Global Leader in Car Rental Expands its Irish Operation to a Next Generation Shared Services Centre in Dublin – 11/02/10 – 100 New Jobs Announced at Hertz in Dublin

Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Mary Coughlan, TD, today (Thursday 11th February 2010), announced that Hertz, a global leader in car rental, is to expand its European Shared Services Centre in Dublin with the creation of up to 100 new jobs.

The increased capacity of the Shared Services Centre will see the transformation of Hertz’s existing Dublin operations to include support elements in the areas of human resources, finance, sales and customer care, in addition to handling customer reservations and other support services activity for Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). The investment is supported by the Irish Government through IDA Ireland.

Making the announcement, the Tánaiste said: “Hertz has successfully operated a European Shared Services Centre from Dublin for over 10 years and the transformation of this facility with the creation of 100 high value new jobs is a welcome step. This expansion will enable the Hertz team in Swords to focus on further enhancing its strategic partners with the business units across EMEA and to grow the operation’s reputation as a centre of excellence for customer care within the group.”

“A high-value transformation of this nature is characteristic of the Government’s ‘Smart Economy’ Strategy and I look forward to working closely with Hertz as it continues to develop and expand its presence in Ireland,” the Tánaiste concluded.

Andrew Varley – Vice President Hertz Europe Service Centre, said: “I am delighted with this announcement and mandate expansion at Hertz in Dublin (Swords). A number of new functions in both Finance expertise and Customer Care and growth elements will be managed from the Shared Services Centre. This will include the establishment of a Best in Class centralised Employee Shared Services Operation for Europe, Middle East, and Africa. The new jobs created by these functions will bring total employment in Swords to over 930 jobs.”
“On behalf of Hertz I look forward to this further development and to continue to build on the company’s relations with Ireland and the Irish Government.”

Hertz is the world’s largest general use car rental company, operating from over 8,000 corporate locations in 145 countries. Hertz is in its 91st year of delivering quality car rental solutions to leisure and corporate customers

Source IDA Ireland – Ireland’s inward investment promotion agency, IDA Ireland (Industrial Development Agency) is responsible for the attraction and development of foreign investment in Ireland

Looking for Hertz Car Hire in Ireland? Follow this link to carrrentals.co.uk

Enterprise Car Hire is a company known for car hire. They have long, but part of the game hire car a bit ‘late. But it has grown and offers a unique product that has succeeded over the years. Credit their success to hear what their customers want, and it worked. Here is a brief history of car hire companies and how they have become a leader.

Beginnings
Hire Car Company actually began as a landlord at all. Jack Taylor, owner of a car Hire company in St. Louis, Missouri, as the administrator of the leasing company. He started a company with a lease, because he thought that people might be of interest to the transmission of a car, as if it were a sale to be specified. It was his idea, but notes that his client wanted this type of vehicle, meanwhile, has begun shop. Taylor Executive Car Hire in 1962. The company has grown rapidly, and Taylor has requested an extension of the lease.
Company Name
In 1969, the Taylor expansion St. Louis, but had a unique name as the “Executive” is known throughout the automotive industry. Taylor decided that the company has served the airline of World War II, and as the name of “Enterprise” was born.
Car Team for buildings
In 1960, has attracted most of the owners of the city airport. The majority of travelers who need a car when they arrived, and when the airport is a comfortable position. But John Taylor, the birthplace of the rental market for offices, the recruitment of local residents who need a car. With that thought, John Taylor has focused on the market and has opened offices outside the airport and the city without an airport. His idea was, and their activities.
In 1974, store manager in Orlando, Florida., came up with the idea of a drop-off and pick up the car service for customers. This time it was revolutionary for the industry. Most other car makers were at the airport, where it was not necessary. This service with their target audience seems to be to recruit locally to be popular.

Enterprise Car Hire Today
Enterprise Car Hire continues to grow and continue to listen to what the customer wants. They continue not to locations in the city and the city was from an airport to open. You pick up and drop off service is available and defined in terms of marketing. One can understand why the company has grown in popularity and has become a major player in the hire car.

Today I am going to do some reviews about individual car hire suppliers. A word of caution before you continue reading is that your results can vary greatly from the reports I will give. These reviews I am about to make are very general about huge companies. All together, these companies operate over 10,000 car hire pick up locations. There is no way all of them will have the same customer service, car quality and policies. I strongly recommend looking into the specific company you will use before accepting a car hire reservation. If you need a car hire in Bristol, you need to research Europcar Bristol, for example, and not just Europcar in general. I hope this can be a small guide, but it is important to do some really in-depth examinations of your specific company to avoid trouble in the future. So, here we go, let?s start on our car hire company review journey!!!

Europcar Review

Main Website : www.europcar.com
Year Started : 1949
Parent Company : Eurazeo
Subsidiary Companies : National Car Rental and Alamo Rent A Car (European Operations)
Type of Service : Supplier

Overall Ranking 7 / 10

Company Overview ? Europcar is headquartered in Paris, France and is one of the biggest suppliers of car hire in Europe. They have a fleet list of more than 200,000 automobiles in almost 3000 location all over the world. The brand is very well known and is used by millions of people every year.

Pros ? Most of the people that made a Europcar review said that the prices were cheap and the cars were in good condition. Many people even reported receiving a brand new car. That is a good sign for Europcar. Low prices and nice cars are a great combination for customers. The only problem is that something might not add up. Cheap prices and great cars means that have to make up the money somewhere.

Cons ? The most common response is that the customer service was bad. Another complaint in the Europcar reviews is that people had a lot of hidden fees they needed to pay for. One person that did a Europcar review for a city in the UK said, ?They may well be one of the cheapest providers, with a large network of vehicles, but our experience is that their service is at best poor, and at worst dishonest.? It is very important that you inspect the car before you drive it and make sure you will not be charged for damages you don?t cause. Also, you need to carefully read the contract before you sign. I have used Europcar many times and I have had very few problems.

Budget Rent a Car Review

Main Website : www.budget.com
Year Started : 1958
Parent Company : Avis Budget Group
Subsidiary Companies : Avis Rent a Car
Type of Service : Supplier

Overall Ranking = 5 / 10

Company Overview ? Budget Rent a Car is an American company that has locations all over the world. They employ more than 26,000 people at almost 2000 pick up locations. They are owned by the Avis Budget Group, however they keep a separate identity from Avis.

Pros ? It was hard to find any people that wrote a positive Budget Rent a Car review. However, many people said they were satisfied with the initial price. Many later reported being charged extra, but the initial price was very cheap. It is possible to only pay the initial price if you know what you are doing. Therefore, you need to make sure you know what you are signing for and you need to confirm the final price before you sign. It might even be a good idea to ask for a post rental inspection of the vehicle so you can understand what their extra charges could be for.

Cons ? Every negative Budget Rent a Car review was due to poor customer service. Not only were people treated poorly when they were picking up the car hire, but they were also treated poorly post-rental. The most common Budget review complaint was the extra fees. It seems like a lot of Budget places are charging for unfair things. Again, I have to say that a lot of these problems can be easily avoided with a post rental inspection. Do not just drop off the keys and run away. You need to get a document from the rental company saying that the car is returned in good condition and that you will not be charged extra. There is no way they will be able to argue against their own documentation.

National Car Rental Review

Main Website : www.nationalcar.com
Year Founded : 1947
Parent Company : Enterprise Holdings Inc.
Subsidiary Companies : Enterprise Rent A Car, Alamo Rent a Car
Type of Service : Supplier

Overall Ranking = 9 / 10

Company Overview ? National Car Rental has more than 2000 pick up locations all over the world. They also have one of the best repeat user programs called the Emerald Club. This always the members to book car hire online and then go directly to the car without bothering with the pick up desk. However, this is only available in locations for some of the United States chapters.

Pros ? Most of the National Car Rental reviews said that the prices were good, the cars were nice and the customer service was tolerable. Relatively, this is by far the best customer service rankings of all three companies in this review. On one car hire review website, almost 40% of people actually recommend using the company. If we put that into real terms, it is more like 95% of people would recommend National. What I mean by real terms is this?Almost everyone that has a positive experience does not write a review because they got what they were expecting. Usually, people only write poor reviews. With such a high percentage of satisfied National Car Rental reviews, I can determine that they are an overall good company.

Cons ? The most common negative response was that the prices were too expensive. Actually, that good be viewed as a good thing. If the prices are high and there were not many reports of hidden extra charges, that means the final price is actually cheaper in many cases. Of course, there are always a few reports of horrible customer service, but I think you know this is the case with every company. I really wanted to give them 10 out of 10, but I cannot do it. However, I can absolutely recommend using National Car Rental for your next holiday, especially in the United States.

Happy Traveling!

This is another car hire company review list. I will be doing a lot of these because I want to get some discussions going about the car hire companies out there. If you read the last post, you will know that I did a comparison of the most commonly used broker companies. At the end of the story, I warned everyone that it is more important to read reviews about the individual car hire companies than the larger brokerage firms. It is because you will not be renting directly from the broker, but from the individual car hire company. Here are some brief overviews about a few well-known car hire suppliers.

Enterprise Rent-A-Car Review

Main Website : www.enterprise.com
Year Started : 1957
Parent Company : Enterprise Holdings
Subsidiary Companies : National Car Rental, Alamo Rent A Car

Overall Ranking = 5 / 10

Company Overview ? Enterprise Rent-A-Car is headquartered just outside St. Louis in Clayton, Missouri, USA. They have almost 7000 locations around the world but mostly in the United States. Although the company will rent cars to anyone that wants, they main target market are people that are involved in accidents that need replacement cars.

Pros ? The most common positive report about Enterprise is that they are punctual. Almost every person that made a Enterprise review either said they were on time or did not mention this aspect at all. That leads me to believe they are a timely company. Another positive response is that Enterprise will pick you up. This is a lot better than going to the rental desks, especially if you need a replacement car for a few days. And although there were mixed reviews for customer service, one repeat customer had this to say in an Enterprise Rent-A-Car review, ?From the time they pick me up to the time they drop me off at home, all the employees are extremely friendly. ?

Cons ? Most of the complaints I found we in regards to insurance problems. Many of the customers felt they were treated unfairly after being in an accident with the car. Furthermore, the customers found it extremely difficult to get a straight answer from the company. One user was duped into taking the extra insurance from Enterprise and then was forced to pay from his personal insurance when there was an accident. He said, ?I purchased the supplemental insurance at $14.99 per day, but Enterprise opted to go through my primary insurance to pay for the damages to the rental rather than using the supplemental insurance I had purchased.? That is why you need to be careful and make sure you do not buy the additional insurance if you are already covered by your plan. But, do not bank on the Enterprise staff telling you about this. It is their job to push the insurance, it is your job to know your own insurance policy.

Avis Rent a Car Review

Main Website : www.avis.com
Year Started : 1946
Parent Company : Avis Budget Group
Subsidiary Companies : Budget Rent a Car

Overall Ranking = 6 / 10

Company Overview ? The company has roughly 5000 locations all around the world. In Europe, the company is referred to as Avis Europe plc. The USA headquarters is in Parsippany-Troy Hills, New Jersey, USA and the Europe chapter is headquartered in the United Kingdom. The website for Europe is www.avis-europe.com.

Pros ? The Avis reviews were all over the board. One of the best things about Avis is that they regularly change their fleet of cars so that they are relatively new and always in good working condition. Unlike some of the other companies, I did not read one Avis review that stated the car broke down. One customer claims that, ?Avis don’t like to take the mileage on their cars much over 13,000 (miles),? that is around 21,000 km. If you are looking for a top quality car, Avis is your best choice.

Cons ? About 99% of the complaints were of poor customer service. Most people felt as though they were treated very unfairly and not respectfully. Another common negative response is that no one seemingly had any authority to solve the customer problems. Even though some of the Avis employees acknowledged that the customers were incorrectly charged, they said they could not fix the problem. Here is a quote from an Avis review, ?Customer service was awful. Everybody admitted that I had a problem, nobody was willing/able to help.? If you only care about the quality of the car, go with Avis. If you care about customer service, find a different company. Avis gets 6 out of 10 because their cars are in top working condition, not because of customer service.

Hertz Rent a Car

Main Website : www.hertz.com
Year Founded : 1918
Parent Company : Hertz Global Holdings, Inc.
Subsidiary Companies : Advantage Rent-a-Car

Overall Ranking = 8 / 10

Company Overview ? The Hertz Corporation was founded in 1918 and has its headquarters in Park Ridge, New Jersey, USA. They are a publicly held company with the New York Stock Exchange symbol of HTZ. They have worldwide rental offices in over 7,500 locations. They claim to be the largest car rental company in all the world.

Pros ? Many of the people said they enjoyed the quality of the cars they were given and also liked that they had options to take a different car upon arrival. This is a really nice response compared to the other companies where a lot of people said they did not receive the car they were promised. Many people that made a Hertz review also said they liked the convenience of the pick up locations. Hertz also got some good remarks about the value for the car received. One person that made a Hertz review said, ?they offered the best price for weekend rentals & are in the most convenient location for pick-up. The vehicles have all been rather new and in good condition (the oldest of them a 2008 ford fiesta).? Of the three companies in today?s post, Hertz has the best remarks by far.

Cons ? It wouldn?t be a car hire company review post if there were no disadvantages to Hertz. But seriously, the only real problems I found was people complaining about foolish mistakes they made themselves. Of course there is the ever present lack of customer service comment, but here is what one customer review said that I found rather amusing. It goes like this, ?I was asked did I not want full insurance? I said I only want the usual basic Theft & CDW cover. Lady processed document & I signed. What I did not notice in my hurry that I was now signing for a 4 day car hire deal at ?221.90! – I became aware of this when I got my CC bill.? Apparently, this person decided to just sign the agreement without even taking a look at the bottom line. I am quite aware that many of the companies are trying to rip people off, but this can often be easily avoided by READING WHAT YOU ARE SIGNING. I do not really have an sympathy for someone that signed for a certain price, then is upset with that price. The bottom line is that you should always read what you are signing for, and if nothing else, make sure you read the price. Some people that complain should be writing negative reviews about their common sense, not about the car hire company.

Conclusion
It seems there are not too many companies out there that are providing high quality customer service. The best way to combat this is to be as friendly as possible. Maybe it will rub off on the employee. Furthermore, you need to take these reviews with a grain of salt. What I mean by that is many of the reviews are for a specific location and do not necessarily reflect the company as a whole. Just because there is a bad review at Heathrow Airport, does not mean the service will be bad at Gatwick.

Furthermore, it is up to you (the customer) to know what you are getting yourself into. I cannot stress this enough so I will write it in bold? DO NOT SIGN THE CONTRACT UNLESS YOU READ THE CONTRACT!!! Save yourself a lot of trouble and headaches later by knowing what is going on at the moment of the rental. It will greatly improve your chances of having a positive experience.

Happy Traveling!