Rental vehicle shortage could hamper tourism

Jun 20, 2022 | 5:00 AM

If your summer travel plans involve a rental vehicle, be prepared for limited selection and higher prices.

A recent Statistics Canada report on the availability of rental vehicles in B.C. stated it’s due to several factors.

The report points out that rental companies reduced their fleet size as COVID-19 travel restrictions curtailed demand, and gearing back up has been difficult due to a shortage of new vehicles. The global semiconductor chip shortage has had a significant impact on automotive production.

Rental fleets have started to rebound, but you can expect to pay $125 to $200 a day for a basic rental, and at least double that for a luxury ride.

The StatCan report showed that in B.C., the average price of a car rental jumped 31.9 per cent in 2021, even though tourism was still almost 30 per cent below pre-pandemic levels.

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Prior to the pandemic, B.C.’s car rental industry typically had over 35,000 vehicles during the peak season in the second and third quarters, according to the StatCan data.

But the rental vehicle fleet in the province dwindled to just 18,636 vehicles in Q1 of 2021. And as the travel season ramped up, the industry only had 24,457 vehicles by Q3 2021 – more than 10,000 cars short of pre-pandemic levels.

“It’s not like it is just here, this is a concern everywhere. I have heard people going to other countries on long stay vacations (two-three months), purchasing a vehicle and reselling it when they leave, because the cost of renting is so high,” Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association CEO Ellen Walker-Mathews told Vernon Matters. “The Okanagan is primarily a drive market, but it will still have an impact.”

Innovation is also taking hold with a vehicle app similar to Airbnb only for vehicles. It is called Turo, a car sharing app that allows you to rent someone else’s vehicle.

“The price might not be less, but there could be availability,” Walker-Mathews said.

Turo app allows people to rent privately owned vehicles submitted image

The Kelowna International Airport is a hub for vehicle rentals in the Okanagan, with most of the major rental companies represented.

A check for vehicle rentals for the Canada Day long weekend by companies serving YLW showed no availability at Avis and Enterprise and limited availability especially for economy vehicles at Budget and Hertz.

No availability at Enterprise rent-a-car photo submited

Some of the slack could be taken up by taxi, ride-share and tour companies, but none offer the flexibility of self guided travel.

One local businessman told Vernon Matters that he tried to rent a vehicle for a business trip to the Lower Mainland and the nearest availability was in Kamloops for an economy car at a cost of over $460 for three days.

by Kevin Rothwell

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