Enterprise Tops Airport Car Rental Survey

Increasing value-sensitivity among business travelers helped push Enterprise Rent-A-Car to the top spot in overall customer satisfaction among travelers in J.D. Power and Associates' 2002 Domestic Airport Rental Car Customer Satisfaction Study. Released Tuesday, J.D. Power's seventh annual study polled 3,400 random car rental customers at or near airports, including 1,200 business travelers.

Enterprise led in both the business and leisure segments, said Mike Taylor, J.D. Power director of travel service. Enterprise this year eclipsed last year's winners in the business travel segment, Avis and National, which tied for first place in 2001. Traditional business renter Hertz came in second this year, followed by National and Avis.

Despite the rental car industry's recent push to raise rates, the study also found that pricing and value actually have become more of a concern to business travelers within the past year. "Business renters used to be concerned with pickup, return, rates and value," Taylor said. "This year, pickup remained first but rates and value came in second. People are very price-sensitive this year, especially with certain markets like Los Angeles going up by 13 percent."

Enterprise, while typically not perceived as a business travel brand, in the past year opened new offices at airports and increased its business travel share. Historically, the brand based its offices in suburban locations, but Enterprise spokespeople last month said usage patterns had changed to favor both more local rental service and increasingly destination-based travel.

However, price alone will not entice more business travelers for Enterprise. "Enterprise does well in price, but they sacrifice speed of service and certain airport amenities that the more business-oriented brands have," Taylor said. Business travel-heavy Hertz beat Enterprise in the pickup and reservation process, as well as the rental car itself. ANC Rental Corp.'s business brand National Car Rental received high scores for its return process, even though the brand earlier this year eliminated a refueling program that allowed travelers to pay local self-serve rates for refueling upon return.

The study also found that Internet bookings among business travelers grew rapidly year over year. Twenty-eight percent of business travelers booked a reservation online in 2002, compared with only 12 percent in 2001. Leisure travel bookings grew to 36 percent last year, and the study's authors attributed this to online discount incentives provided by suppliers.