Clark Howard warns of rental car shortages, ‘sticker shock’ as travel picks back up

Jacksonville,FL — The next time you rent a car, WOKV’s Consumer Warrior Clark Howard warns you may experience some sticker shock.

That’s as Howard says the COVID-19 pandemic has made a mess of the rental car industry.

“Now that travel demand has suddenly picked back up for travel by air, now car rental companies are way short of vehicles,” explains Howard.

Howard says to save money, you’ll want to avoid renting a car directly at the airport. Instead, he says you may want to consider a peer-to-peer car rental service.

“What I’d like you to do is look at Turo. Turo is a peer-to-peer car rental service. Getaround is the other; it’s their competitor. With these peer-to-peer rental agencies, you’re renting from an individual,” says Howard.

If you’re not comfortable using one of these services, Howard says there is another option.

“Enterprise car rental has a lot of what are known as neighborhood locations. You’ll save a lot of money, potentially, on the car rental, if you take an Uber or Lyft to an in-town location of Enterprise,” says Howard.

Howard says if your trip is still a long way out, you may see rental car prices start to come down before then.

Get more consumer news and advice from Clark Howard in his latest on-demand podcasts.

Cox Media Group