Leading vehicle company Euorpcar has taken delivery of its 200th Iveco Daily less than two years after receiving its first Daily.
Earlier in the year Europcar expanded its partnership with Iveco to include the supply of new pantech-body trucks
Europcar sai it was initially attracted to the Daily range due to its ‘combination of safety features, car-like driving characteristics, low cost of ownership and modern appearance’.
Europcar head of fleet procurement and planning, Laura Harewood, said that with the strong performance of the earlier models, Europcar had no hesitation in investing in the Daily range to further grow its commercial rental fleet.
“Since having the Daily 35S van model in our fleet, the feedback from our clients has been very positive,” Laura said.
With a 12m³ volume capacity and over 1.5 tonnes of payload, Laura said this particular model Daily was an ideal specification for rental applications.
“It’s a great size in that it has a solid payload and carrying capacity while still being easy to drive and manoeuvrable,” she said.
“We have a range of customers using the Daily product, from those renting it for the weekend to move house, all the way through to freight and transportation companies who might take a vehicle for several weeks to meet a contract need or while their vehicle is off the road for maintenance.
“For the most part though, our clientele are not regular drivers of commercial vehicles, so we need to provide them with a vehicle that drives very similarly to a passenger car, and the Daily shines at doing this.”
The strong relationship between Europcar and Iveco was recently expanded to include the supply of Daily cab chassis’ with pantech bodies. In a segment historically dominated by Japanese offerings, Europcar has excitingly embraced the Iveco product to deliver to the rental truck market, a clear and demonstrable point of difference.
“Another benefit for our clients is that the Iveco Daily range is good on fuel, and for Europcar, as a business, we get the longevity of a quality engine as well as long oil change intervals of 40,000 kilometres for reduced downtime,” Laura said.
Vehicle performance aside, Laura also cites the Daily’s clean and modern appearance as another reason why Europcar partners with the Iveco brand.
“The rental market is a competitive industry and one way Europcar sets itself apart is to have the most modern commercial fleet possible,” she said.
“We typically refresh our commercial vehicle fleet every two to three years to provide our customers with the very latest in vehicles and technology.
“The Daily’s styling is at the forefront, and our customers like the way it looks – people want to drive a smart looking van, even if only renting it for a short time.”
In light of the COVID-19 crisis, Europcar Mobility Group recently launched the ‘Together’ program across the group globally. As part of this program, Europcar in Australia will work in partnership with food retailers and logistics companies in order to offer a rental service of light commercial vehicles with drivers, to help meet the increased demand for logistics and delivery services across the country, whilst also keeping the Europcar operations team in employment. Discussions are already taking place with some of the country’s largest supermarket chains and food retailers.
Every vehicle is now subject to rigorous cleaning and disinfecting measures after each rental, as well as a ‘zero contact’ policy with Europcar employees in branches.
