Car Rental Bookings: Worth the Effort?

Air, hotel and car bookings have long been the travel agent’s trifecta when booking a leisure trip for clients.

The car portion of the trip, however, seems to have taken a backseat to the others. A rental is often perceived as a relatively small part of the overall package, and agents have complained about difficulty in collecting commissions.

Are rental car bookings going out of vogue with travel agents?

Travel Market Report spoke with a number of agents and car rental company representatives for a two-part series on how agents perceive car rental bookings and whether car rental suppliers are supporting the travel agency community.

Is a car rental worth it?
Agents were divided on the importance of car rental bookings to the overall booking process.

Some said that car rental commissions can add up nicely, while others see the sale as a black hole for commissions.

“It can be worthwhile if it’s a booking for a week or more,” said Elaine Carey, a Travel Experts agent in Whispering Pines, N.C. (Travel Experts is a Virtuoso member.) “But I sometimes lose money trying to get the best value for the client; I have a lot of elderly clients and it might take a lot of time to make sure they have the right car.”

A small cut?
The prevailing domestic commission on car rentals is 5%, but some agents find ways to enhance that through using corporate numbers or taking advantage of promotions.

Robbie Louchheim, president of Travel Destinations, Inc., a host agency in Scottsdale that is a top 25 Ensemble member, said several of his agents sell profitable car rentals to their corporate clients.

“They get a 10% commission on every booking, even the leisure bookings,” Louchheim said, due to Ensemble’s relationship with Budget. “All agents should check with their consortium to see if they’re eligible for enhanced commissions or other benefits.”

Louchheim also believes the major car rental companies are “getting a lot better at paying commission. It is important to follow up, but they are getting better.”

Another car rental fan is Diana Duran, an agent with the loyalty division of Montrose Travel, another Ensemble member, who called car rentals “absolutely worthwhile” because “they help us increase commissions and the number of transactions.”

Check-in complications
Some agents contended they have trouble with car rental companies because when a change is made in the reservation, the company does not pay commission.

Nancy Moody, CTC, a Travel Experts affiliated agent in Raleigh, said rental companies change the contract at customer check-in about 50-70% of the time and remove the agent’s IATA number– resulting in a loss of the commission.

“For a 5% commission it is not worth following up so I often feel it is just a service and not a commissionable sale.”

As a result, said Moody, “I’m not sure agents can make money from car rentals, but I will always ask the client if they need one.”

Others echoed Moody’s concerns about agents being left out from earning commissions.

“It infuriates me when reservations get changed and [the car rental companies] change the reservation number so we’re cut out of entirely,” said Carey, the Travel Experts affiliate. “One of my clients rented a car for a few days, then kept it an extra day– which meant a changed reservation and a loss of commission.”

Carey compares the economics of booking car rentals for clients to that of booking economy hotels.

“We might get a little in the way of commission, but we also have to chase them; with car rentals it can take months,” said Carey.

Check back next week for Part Two, featuring the view from car rental companies and tips for agents to earn more from car rental bookings