Hertz files for bankruptcy

[RooFlyer]

Rental car company Hertz files for bankruptcy (Oz, probably pay-walled - google the headline)

Hertz Global Holdings, one of the nation’s largest car-rental companies, filed for bankruptcy protection Friday night in the US, saddled with about $US19 billion ($29 billion) in debt and nearly 700,00 vehicles that have been largely idled because of the coronavirus.

The Florida-based company entered chapter 11 proceedings in the US Bankruptcy Court in Delaware, hoping to survive a drop-off in ground traffic from the pandemic and avoid a forced liquidation of its vehicle fleet.

The company’s collapse marks one of the highest-profile corporate defaults stemming from the pandemic’s impact on air and ground travel, though Hertz also had challenges before the current economic crisis.

Even before the COVID-19 outbreak, Hertz had been struggling with competition from peers including Enterprise Holdings and Avis Budget Group, as well as from ride-hailing services such as Uber Technologies and Lyft. The company lost some $US58 million last year, its fourth consecutive annual net loss.

 

[OZDUCK]

Rental car company Hertz files for bankruptcy (Oz, probably pay-walled - google the headline)

I, and I suppose others, have already received this e-mail from the local Hertz people.

Dear Ozduck As I am sure you will appreciate, the vehicle rental industry has been deeply impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and the consequent downturn in domestic and international travel. As such, I am writing to you to personally reassure you that all our businesses around the world remain open and serving customers. All our reservations, promotional offers and vouchers are available as usual. Customers can expect the same high level of service and reliability with enhanced cleaning protocols for extra peace of mind and our loyalty programme points and rewards are not affected. And importantly, the Hertz APAC team remain available and committed to supporting you. You may have read or heard overnight that Hertz Global Holdings (the U.S. based entity) has voluntarily filed for reorganisation under Chapter 11 in the United States legal process. It’s vital you know, and understand, that it is still "business as usual" for Hertz across the APAC region (Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Korea, Japan and China). Hertz APAC region is not included in the U.S. Chapter 11 legal process. "Chapter 11", put simply, describes the move a company takes to restructure its debt and address other financial issues. During this type of restructuring, a company typically continues its usual operations so that it can emerge stronger and that is just what the U.S. and Canadian Hertz entities undergoing Chapter 11 intend to do here. The U.S. Chapter 11 process will ensure that Hertz can continue to operate its business effectively under current management in all of its core geographies. We are preparing our operations for the recovery phase as lock-downs are lifted and corporate and leisure travellers start to return to the market. Hertz has a deep commitment to connecting people around the world and creating meaningful experiences for global customers. This commitment has not changed. We intend to emerge from this process as a stronger company, well positioned as the global travel industry recovers over time. In summary, we are confident we’re taking the right steps to protect the Hertz APAC businesses and ready for it the rebound. I’d like to thank you, our valued members for your ongoing support and rest assured, we remain open for business and ready to serve you and across our locations around the globe. As always, we thank you for your business. Best regards,

Eoin MacNeill Vice President APAC

 

[jase05]

I like Hertz and as a President’s Circle member I feel we have been looked after pretty well so would definitely be sad to see them disappear.
This time last year who could have predicted that my VA and Hertz elite memberships would be basically worthless

 

[RooFlyer]

I, and I suppose others, have already received this e-mail from the local Hertz people.

Being Hertz Gold member, I don't seem to be on their Christmas card list! But that's a pretty good, clear e-mail from the locals. (Of course they are only 'Hertz' to the extent that they pay for the franchise name )

 

[OZDUCK]

Being Hertz Gold member, I don't seem to be on their Christmas card list! But that's a pretty good, clear e-mail from the locals. (Of course they are only 'Hertz' to the extent that they pay for the franchise name )

Apparently I am a Gold Plus member but i don't know if that means anything or not. The last 2 times I used them was through an agent.

 

[jakeseven7]

I like Hertz and as a President’s Circle member I feel we have been looked after pretty well so would definitely be sad to see them disappear.
This time last year who could have predicted that my VA and Hertz elite memberships would be basically worthless

You aren’t alone. A lot of us backed the ‘wrong horses’ unknowingly...

 

[jase05]

Apparently I am a Gold Plus member but i don't know if that means anything or not. The last 2 times I used them was through an agent.

Their loyalty program is called “ Hertz Gold Plus Rewards” and has 3 tier levels
- Gold
- Five Star
- President’s Circle

As long as you are a member of their program you should have got a email.
One of the VA perks was being offered President’s Circle so I thought why not give them a go ( I was a Europcar member) and I must say they have treated us very well and are so much better to deal with than Europcar

Post automatically merged: May 23, 2020

You aren’t alone. A lot of us backed the ‘wrong horses’ unknowingly...

Any idea if Hertz’s problems are due to Coronavirus or have they financially been in strife for years?

 

[Hvr]

This time last year who could have predicted that my VA and Hertz elite memberships would be basically worthless

Please tell us your other elite memberships so we can bail out now.

 

[OZDUCK]

Their loyalty program is called “ Hertz Gold Plus Rewards” and has 3 tier levels
- Gold
- Five Star
- President’s Circle

As long as you are a member of their program you should have got a email.
One of the VA perks was being offered President’s Circle so I thought why not give them a go ( I was a Europcar member) and I must say they have treated us very well and are so much better to deal with than Europcar

Post automatically merged: May 23, 2020

Any idea if Hertz’s problems are due to Coronavirus or have they financially been in strife for years?

According to this article from the NY Times that were profitable early this year and actually have a Billion Dollars in cash available. However, it seems that they had accrued a lot of debt under previous management and were unable to service this debt with the reduced income since the pandemic started.

Hertz, Car Rental Pioneer, Files for Bankruptcy Protection (Published 2020)

The company, which had amassed a large debt, has been devastated by the sharp drop in travel during the pandemic.

www.nytimes.com

 

[jase05]

Please tell us your other elite memberships so we can bail out now.

QF P1


Just joking, only a lowly SG

 

[Daver6]

Their loyalty program is called “ Hertz Gold Plus Rewards” and has 3 tier levels
- Gold
- Five Star
- President’s Circle

As long as you are a member of their program you should have got a email.

President's Circle member and no email received. Given how poor I've found their customer, no receiving an email hardly comes as a surprise to me.

 

[twiningb]

I must say they have treated us very well and are so much better to deal with than Europcar

I have found Hertz (booked by my insurer during repair) and Europcar (and Thrifty for that matter) to be fine in Australia, although maybe it's because in Australia I'm only ever renting something for a few days in decent weather.

I've had huge problems with both overseas: Hertz gave away our car (prepaid for eight weeks and thousands of dollars, to specifically get 7-seat 4WD) on arrival in Miami for a family roadtrip and substituted something else smaller and in poor condition, then screwed me when it finally died at 8000ft elevation in freezing Wyoming winter.

Europcar did dynamic currency conversion against my will in Ireland, causing me a substantial financial loss and fewer points, because the card actually earned better in foreign currency. (Also, brickbats for Citi who wouldn't enforce a DCC chargeback despite that being their job as the issuer.)

I've actually found Alamo/National to be great every time I've used them, mostly in the US but once in Denmark too.

 

[jase05]

I have found Hertz (booked by my insurer during repair) and Europcar (and Thrifty for that matter) to be fine in Australia, although maybe it's because in Australia I'm only ever renting something for a few days in decent weather.

I've had huge problems with both overseas: Hertz gave away our car (prepaid for eight weeks and thousands of dollars, to specifically get 7-seat 4WD) on arrival in Miami for a family roadtrip and substituted something else smaller and in poor condition, then screwed me when it finally died at 8000ft elevation in freezing Wyoming winter.

Europcar did dynamic currency conversion against my will in Ireland, causing me a substantial financial loss and fewer points, because the card actually earned better in foreign currency. (Also, brickbats for Citi who wouldn't enforce a DCC chargeback despite that being their job as the issuer.)

I've actually found Alamo/National to be great every time I've used them, mostly in the US but once in Denmark too.

We had a couple of bad experiences with Europcar in Europe which was the last straw so I decided to take up the Hertz status match with VA. I’ve used them about a 20 times in Australia and they have been great and both times in NZ they looked after us exceptionally well. We had planned to use them in the US later this year and their rates stacked up well against competitors