Hertz has not officially entered the car sharing business – unlike Avis, which bought Zipcar, the largest car sharing company, at the beginning of 2013. Yet Hertz is in the car sharing business through its 24/7 service, which offers rentals at any time of day or night for any length of time.
Hertz has about 35,000 vehicles in the US equipped with technology enabling the car sharing service. By 2016, the car rental giant expects to have about 500,000 vehicles ready worldwide for this service. That would be about 10 times the size of the current car sharing industry, Hertz said.
Hertz expects to have the 24/7 service available in more than 2,000 locations worldwide by the end of the year, up 200 locations more from where it is now. Users can rent and reserve a nearby vehicle on short notice and change their rental needs from inside the car/ They can enter and start the vehicle using different methods, such as by swiping a membership card or entering a command on a smart phone. Registered members are using a key fob that they pick up from a Hertz location or receive in the mail.