MáLAGA – Anyone who has rented a car on the Costa del Sol in recent months has already noticed. It has become a lot more expensive than before the corona pandemic. Now there is also a risk of a shortage of rental cars.
Due to the corona pandemic, car rental companies were forced to sell part of their fleet. Consequently, now that they need new cars, there are too few available. And, furthermore, the high season has started.
Half of the fleet compared to before the pandemic
The president of the association of car rental companies Aescva, Ana María García, warns in the newspaper SUR that the current fleet is only half that of before the pandemic. This puts the rental companies in a difficult situation. Now they want to buy new cars again, there is a shortage because of the shortage of microchips.
Possible economic blow to the coast
Therefore, this will make it difficult, if not impossible, for some tourists who come to the Costa del Sol to rent a car. In any case, they will notice the scarcity of supply in the price. That could mean a major economic blow to the coast because 80% of all cars rented out in Andalucia are in the province of Málaga.
García explains that rental companies during the pandemic had to sell part of their car fleet to keep their businesses afloat. Now they notice that dealers can only supply a limited number of cars and prefer to sell their cars to private individuals.
The number of tourists this season is expected to be close to that of the record year 2019, but the companies have only half the number of cars they had before. The bookings are already pouring in.
“No interest from governments”
García notes that governments don’t seem to be particularly interested in this issue. However, a solution must be found so that the tourists can move around. “No one has shown any interest in this topic,” García says. García concludes that if more cars are not added, the rate to rent them could double.
Price increases and scarcity in supply elsewhere in Spain too
The problem is not exclusive to the Costa del Sol. Diario de Mallorca also devotes an article to the more expensive car rental rates. Since the conditions on many coasts have been the same, the tourists on the Costa Blanca will not escape price increases and scarcity to add new cars to their fleets.
Also in the Canary Islands, some companies in the car rental sector put up signs that there are no vehicles. Here, according to the ABC newspaper, the fleet has already increased by 50,000 units since the companies withdrew units due to the pandemic. Still, booking a car on some islands is an impossible mission. The prices are also higher than ever.
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