Hertz Provides 24/7 Rental Service For Imperial College London Car Club

LONDON--Oct. 14, 2013: The Hertz Corporation , the world's largest general use car rental brand, has signed a partnership with Imperial College London to provide Hertz 24/7 technology-enhanced vehicles for staff use during working hours and for students and private requirements during evenings, weekends and holidays. More than 3,000 staff and 13,500 students now have the ability to rent a low emission or electric car from Hertz by the hour, helping to reduce car congestion on campus through shared vehicle use. Successfully introduced to the college's South Kensington and Ascot campuses, the Imperial College Car Club is part of the university's on-going commitment to reduce its carbon footprint.

Michel Taride, Group President, Hertz International, said: "We're delighted to offer the Hertz 24/7 network to Imperial College London so that students and staff alike can benefit from simple, convenient and affordable short-term rentals. With its low emission and electric vehicles, Hertz 24/7 is a popular option for organizations looking to reduce both travel costs and CO2 emissions, and it's a pleasure to welcome Imperial College to the scheme."

A spokesperson for Imperial College London, said: "Using Hertz 24/7 vehicles as our employee pool cars is reducing our reliance on taxis and personal vehicles for business trips between campuses. Membership is free and is available to staff and students, including our 300 clubs and societies, for private use outside working hours, providing a convenient and cost-effective alternative to traditional car use."

Four low or zero emission vehicles are now in use across the college's campuses. Three cars – a Ford Fiesta 1.4 TDCi, an automatic Kia Rio and an all-electric Mitsubishi IMiEV – are at the South Kensington campus, while an additional VW Golf BlueMotion 1.6 TDCi is in the Silwood Park campus in Ascot. Further parking bays have also been allocated across the college's sites in Royal Brompton, Hammersmith, Charing Cross and St Mary's, Paddington.

Members can easily book the vehicles online, by phone, or using a smartphone app and, as with all 24/7 vehicles, RFID technology allows keyless entry to any vehicle in the fleet. While on the road, members have 24/7 one-touch access to the Member Care Centre through the in-car, hands-free telecom technology.

All 24/7 rentals in the UK include 20 free miles, congestion charge, cleaning, maintenance and VAT, with standard rates starting from £5.50 per hour. Imperial College London Car Club members will also be able to use the Hertz 24/7 service UK, US, France, Germany, Spain and Australia for hourly, daily or weekly rentals, with any time instant access.

Imperial College London is the latest educational institution for Hertz's 24/7 program in the UK, which also serves Reading University and London's Brunel University. Hertz 24/7 also partners with over 50 universities in the United States.

Hertz 24/7 offers technology-enhanced vehicles in convenient locations across the UK, US, France, Germany, Spain and Australia. Providing round-the-clock access to vehicles for hire by the hour, day, week or month, Hertz currently has 35,000 vehicles (including cars, mini-vans, vans and SUVs) equipped for 24/7 rentals. As Hertz continues to roll out the technology through its global fleet, around 500,000 vehicles are expected to be in the network by 2016, which is expected to be ten times the size of the current car sharing industry combined.