‘Warning: Roads not suitable for tourists’ Kiwi drivers caution

From harsh winters to earth-moving earthquakes: are international drivers equipped to handle New Zealand roads? In the eyes of three quarters of hire car customers who responded to our recent survey, apparently not.

Many believed that drivers from overseas were unprepared for the unpredictable driving conditions of New Zealand – an opinion especially held by older New Zealand drivers (86% of Baby Boomers).

Most of the survey respondents have reported they have taken good care of their own hire cars though, with only 12% admitting to driving their rental with less care than their own vehicle.

The survey results also showed:

• More than half of hire car drivers always paid for additional car rental insurance,
• Roughly three in five always read the terms and conditions in full before finalising their car rental, and
• More than three quarters of hire car customers scrutinised the vehicle condition report before hiring.

On a lighter note, one in five took the opportunity to spoil themselves by hiring a car they could not afford to own.

Whatever the occasion for hiring a car, our customer satisfaction ratings will help you decide which car hire company to use.

This year, Ace received our most satisfied customers award for hire cars; ahead of Thrifty, Avis, Budget and Hertz. Ace received five star ratings for value for money, availability of vehicle booked, the booking process, transparency of cost and fees, and overall customer satisfaction.

Also achieving five star ratings was Avis for its customer service, and availability of accessories.

Canstar Blue commissions Your Source to regularly survey 2,500 New Zealand consumers across a range of categories to measure and track customer satisfaction. The outcomes reported are the results from those within the survey group who have hired a car in New Zealand in the last 12 months – in this case, 392 people. Brands must have received at least 30 responses to be included.

Results are comparative and it should be noted that brands that received three stars have still achieved a satisfaction measure of at least six out of 10.

Overall customer satisfaction

Ace proved a five star achiever for overall customer satisfaction in this category; ahead of four star recipients Thrifty and Avis, and three star recipients Budget and Hertz.

Value for money

Achieving another five star accolade was Ace, this time for value for money. Both Thrifty and Budget earned four stars in this area, and Hertz and Avis finished with three.

Customer service

Customers of both Hertz and Avis were most satisfied with the service they received when hiring a car. Both companies received five stars, and were followed by Thrifty four, and Ace and Budget with three.

Availability of vehicle booked

A trip can be thrown into disarray if the car (or type of car) you have booked is not available when you need it. Ace excelled in this area, receiving five stars for the availability of vehicles booked. Both Budget and Hertz received four stars each, followed by Thrifty and Avis with three.

Booking process

A smooth and simple booking process can be the deciding factor in which car hire company to book with. In this criterion, Ace received a five star rating. Thrifty, Avis and Hertz were next with four star ratings, followed by three star recipient, Budget.

Transparency of costs and fees

Ace received another five star rating for the transparency of their hire car costs and fees. They were followed by Thrifty with a four star rating, and three star recipients Avis, Budget and Hertz.

Availability of accessories

Do you need a GPS to avoid getting lost in strange cities, or a baby seat for your child? Our five star recipient for the availability of rental car accessories was Avis; followed by four star recipients Budget and Hertz, then three star achievers Ace and Thrifty.