No rental cars available even though the booking is confirmed
A non-US resident booked a car for the US (San Diego) and got a confirmation from rentalcars and Hertz. When he tried to pick it up, (it was yesterday, on Dec. 24) he was told that no cars are available for at least the next two days (until Dec. 26; but there is no guarantee). The plan was to leave the city on the 26th.
Any tips on this situation? Rentalcars phone does not work (they're on holiday). Should he just leave the reservation as is (and wait for Rentalcars reply in their operating hours -- at least to get a refund for the car which has not been received) and book through another agency?
Another problem is that there is no availability for Dec. 25-26 directly through the rental websites like Enterprise, Hertz, Alamo, etc. But rentalcars shows availability. If he books with rentalcars again, is it likely that there will be no availability, as in the original case?
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Why is there a car rental shortage?
That is because the shortage of semiconductor chips that has held up auto manufacturing persists, leaving rental car companies to operate with lower inventory after they sold off chunks of their fleets in the early days of the pandemic. Building that stock back up has been more difficult than expected.Can car rental cancel your reservation?
Another part of the reason is that the car rental industry, unlike many hotels and almost all airlines, still allows you to cancel or miss a reservation without paying a penalty.Is it better to wait for last minute car rentals?
But when it comes to rental cars, this might surprise you: The best time to rent a car is last minute, when they tend to be cheaper. That's according to a NerdWallet analysis conducted in March 2022 of 360 rental car prices from eight major car rental companies in the United States.Seinfeld - What's the Point of a Reservation
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Carlos Pernalete Tua, energepic.com, DANIEL YAMPOLSCHI, Pixabay