Enterprise Rent-A-Car today said it will not follow Cendant Car Rental Group's lead in implementing across-the-board hikes on corporate car rental rates. Cendant's Avis and Budget brands this month announced a 7 percent to 8 percent rate increase to counter mounting fleet costs
(BTN, Aug. 15).
"We've made a business decision to keep our prices among the lowest in the industry," said Brad Carr, Enterprise vice president of corporate business development. "That means we'll continue to honor existing contracts and won't be implementing across-the-board rate hikes."
Enterprise, which for years has been the dominant player in the rental replacement business, has continued to increase its relevance to the corporate rental car market, most notably through efforts to bolster on-airport locations, now standing at more than 200.
The company in a statement said it has 200,000 corporate accounts, "which includes small- to medium-sized businesses, as well as many
Fortune 500 corporations." According to data provided by Enterprise for
BTN's 2005 Business Travel Survey
(BTN, May 30), business travel sales last year comprised between 10 percent and 20 percent of the company's total revenue, contributing more than $1 billion in to its bottom line.