Rental car customer satisfaction has been pretty steady even though the COVID-19 pandemic significantly reduced travel this year.
“As with other travel suppliers, this has been an incredibly challenging period for the car rental industry,” said Michael Taylor, travel intelligence lead at J.D. Power. “Despite these economic headwinds, the major rental car companies have been able to maintain high levels of customer satisfaction throughout the pandemic, largely through great customer service and enhanced cleaning protocols to build confidence with travelers.”
The research and consulting firm analyzed responses from 7,364 business and leisure travelers who rented a vehicle at an airport location from August 2019 through August 2020. The J.D. Power 2020 North America Rental Car Satisfaction Study measured customer satisfaction with the entire airport rental car experience, from reservation to vehicle return, and ranked airport-based rental car companies.
Hertz topped the list for the second year in a row, followed closely by Enterprise and Alamo. Budget came in last.
Here’s how the major rental car companies ranked in the survey, based on a 1,000-point scale:
1. Hertz, 852
2. Enterprise, 849
3. Alamo, 848
4. National, 845
5. Dollar, 836
6. Thrifty, 835
7. Avis, 834
8. Budget, 818