Hurricane Ian relief adds more pressure to already low rental car inventory in Tampa

TAMPA, Fla. - Travelers who want to rent a vehicle at Tampa International Airport without a reservation are out of luck. Inventory for rental cars has been low since supply chain issues started last year; and adding Hurricane Ian to the mix has really impacted the amount of rentals available.

At TPA Friday afternoon, the line was taking about an hour for people with reservations at Budget Rent A Car. Priscilla Ranostay said she had a reservation with Budget. While her husband was waiting in the long line, she went to other rental car companies with shorter lines to see if she could get a car from them.

"It’s crazy. So we’ve been in line for about 45 minutes, tried a different counter, there’s no cars, no cars, so we just have to wait to get a car," Ranostay said.

Outside at the curb, about 20 travelers waiting for a bus were stranded. Many of them got a notification that the rental car they reserved at a lot off the airport property, was no longer available.

"We ordered a car while we were still in New York, and we got a confirmation, and then we got here to get the shuttle to go pick up the car, and they told us we have no more cars," said Edwige and Andre Joseph. "I paid right away and everything, but um, for some reason today when we called to get picked up to get the car, they said we don’t have any more cars available."

They said they were going to get a refund, but had to find a different way to get to Wesley Chapel from the airport. 

Rental car companies said one of the big issues is Hurricane Ian. Hertz said the following in a statement to FOX 13: 

"We’re seeing increased demand for car rentals in Tampa and across Florida from FEMA and other relief organizations supporting Hurricane Ian recovery efforts and from customers heading into the long weekend. Today and tomorrow are sold out at TPA across our Hertz, Dollar and Thrifty brands but currently have availability on Sunday."

Enterprise Holdings also released this statement: 

"We are working closely with our insurance and collision repair partners to understand their needs, prioritizing vehicle replacement requests to help ensure customers have transportation when they need it, leveraging our more than 450 rental car locations throughout Florida to serve this demand."