Car hire is up to 47% cheaper for 2024 holidays

Car hire rental rates during the Easter and summer holidays have fallen dramatically in many key holiday destinations compared with last year.

New data from Which? Recommended Provider Zest Car Rental, based on thousands of real bookings at airports in 13 locations, shows that earlybirds reserving their car hire now will pay up to 47% less for an Easter booking, and up to 38% less for the summer. 

At Funchal Airport, Madeira, a week’s rental at Easter cost £412 on average last year but just £266 in 2024 (a difference of £146). And at Rhodes airport, a week’s hire in the school summer holidays is, on average, £160 cheaper in 2024.

Rates to the destinations we looked at are still up to 53% higher, on average, than travellers were used to pre-pandemic, but they do represent a significant reduction on last year – great news for holidaymakers, who’ve been plagued for years by inflated prices caused by supply issues during Covid.

But watch out for prices that seem too good to be true. Unscrupulous operators often supplement their low headline rates by adding unexpected extras at start or end of your hire.

Find out which car hire companies you can trust with our surveys of the best and worst car hire providers and car hire brokers

Where have car hire prices fallen for the Easter holidays?

Of the 13 popular holiday destinations we selected, Corfu is cheapest for the Easter holidays. It has also seen the biggest percentage decrease: the cost of a week’s rental in the 2024 Easter holidays was nearly half the 2023 rate. Funchal and Lanzarote were around a third cheaper this year, and Palma de Mallorca and Orlando are £92 and £82 cheaper per week respectively.

Only Rhodes and Nice are currently more expensive at Easter. Prices in France don’t tend to follow the same pattern as the rest of Europe because there is less competition from independent operators. The market is dominated by global brands. 

Where have car rental rates for the summer holidays fallen?

Those booking for this year’s summer holidays will find that nine of the 13 destinations below are cheaper than last year, and five (Rhodes, Funchal, Alicante, Corfu and Palma) have fallen by more than £100 per week on average. 

Lanzarote has the cheapest average rental costs over the summer holidays, at £190 per week. This is a 27% drop on last year.

However, Malaga, Malta and Nice are all slightly more expensive for 2024. And car rental from Larnaca airport is a third dearer than last year.

Why have car hire prices finally come down?

High prices were caused by a manufacturing shortage of new vehicles, but these problems are largely resolved now. Car hire companies have finally been able to replenish their fleets, after selling off stock during the pandemic.

At the same time, the used car market has come to a standstill. Car rental companies usually sell off vehicles after a couple of years, but because the demand for second-hand cars has dropped, they're having to hold on to them for longer. An oversupply of vehicles leads to falling prices.

However, prices are still higher than before the pandemic hit. On average Easter 2024 prices are 51% higher than 2019, and summer 2024 prices are 53% higher across the 13 popular destinations we looked at.

Why are cheap car hire prices not necessarily a good thing?

When headline rates fall to unsustainable levels, the number of complaints we receive from car hire customers rises.

It’s a particular concern in 2024. While rental rates have gone down, we know that car hire companies’ staff, operational and maintenance costs have increased. This means that their profit margins are being squeezed.

When this happens, car hire companies need to find other ways to increase their revenue, and we tend to see more incidents of the kind of behaviour that has given the car hire industry a bad name over the years. This can include illegal pressure selling of insurance, spurious damage charges and even unexplained fees being added on to customers’ bills.

What car hire scams should I watch out for?

In Which? Travel’s latest survey, a whopping 83% of people told us they were worried about getting ripped off when they hire a car. 

In recent years, we’ve seen companies apply underhand new charges, such as the late drop-off fee, the refuelling fee, and charges for existing damage. This year has seen a rise in ‘cleaning fees’, applied because the car has not been returned in an immaculate state.  

Booking with a recommended car hire company, or a trusted broker is your best defence against car hire rip-offs. But you should still be aware of the scams you might face and how to avoid them. 

For peace of mind, check our guide to avoiding car hire rip-offs before you book.