Factors driving the increase in car rental durations in Canada

Length of Rental (LOR) for collision replacement related rentals in Canada jumped nearly six days year-over-year, in part due to continued parts availability and repair backlogs, a said car rental company Enterprise Rent-A-Car.

The overall Canadian LOR was 16 days in Q2 2022, an increase of 5.8 days from Q2 2021 and almost a full day (+0.9) from Q1 2022, according to a report by Company.

Ontario saw the largest increase in average billed days in Canada, to 18.3 in Q2 2022 (up 7.2 days from 11.1 in Q2 2021). All other provinces saw an increase of 4 to 7.1 days year over year.

What explains this increase?

“The results for the second quarter of this year are significant, as it appears many factors are affecting everyone in the collision industry – including technician staffing, ever-changing parts availability, pricing new and used vehicles, inflationary pressures, and new claims processes — are becoming more prevalent,” the report says.

Ontario’s LOR increase from 7.2 days to 18.3 days was both the highest overall LOR and the largest increase, the report noted, Average rental duration in Canada by province Q2 – 2022.

Nova Scotia increased from 7.1 days to 17.4 days, while Quebec increased from 6.9 days to 17.2 days. The lowest overall LOR was New Brunswick at 13.4 days, followed by Newfoundland and Labrador at 14.6 days.

The availability of new OEM parts still causes many delays. The good news is that there are fewer brands that are lagging badly, Greg Horn, chief innovation officer at PartsTrader, said in the report. Six OEM brands experienced median delays of more than 20 days in the first quarter of this year, while the same was true for only three OEM brands in the second quarter.

“As we head into the second half of 2022, spare and recycled parts supply and deliveries are returning to pre-COVID levels,” Horn said. “Most OEMs have also made significant improvements.”

The LOR for rentals associated with driving-related claims was 11.4 days in the second quarter of 2022, up 3.3 days from the first quarter.

Non-controllable results for the second quarter of 2022 were significant. LOR was 30.3 days, a drastic increase of 13.2 days from the second quarter of 2021. All provinces saw large increases – Prince Edward Island was the largest at 35.4 days; only Quebec (24.1) and New Brunswick (28.4) scored less than 30 days.

Could repair volume and backlog shed light on significant increases in unsteerable LOR? Based on feedback from the United States, the report noted that the average national repair backlog in the United States remains near record highs.

“More than 13% of stores are still scheduling more than eight weeks away, a percentage that until last winter had not exceeded 2%,” said Josh Yoswick, editor of the weekly newsletter. CRASH Network in the US “Shops three months late are not uncommon.

There is also an impact on the availability of parts in the repair log, Horn said. “While there are improvements in parts availability in Q2 2022, delays still exist in the OEM parts supply chain and as a result stores are planning further to protect against potential parts delays. .”

The LOR for Total Loss Affiliated Rentals also saw an increase of seven days in the second quarter of 2021 to 20.6 days in the second quarter of 2022. Prince Edward Island achieved the result the highest at 30.3 days, an increase of 19.7 days; Ontario was second in importance with 22.4 days.

The LOR Summary is produced quarterly by Enterprise. Data excludes the common carrier provinces of British Columbia, Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

Featured image by iStock.com/dima_sidelnikov