Europcar Mobility Group UK has reported a fivefold increase in low- and zero-emission rentals in 2024 on the back of investment in its EV fleet and customer support.
The rental and mobility giant recorded more than 1,241,000 electric rental days in 2024; up massively from 228,000 in 2023.
Last year also saw Europcar increase its electrified fleet, with 14% of cars now fully electric or plug-in hybrid – well above the industry average.
The group’s committed focus on simplifying electric and hybrid vehicle rental has also prompted new initiatives.
From 1 April 2025, Europcar introduced price parity on electric car and van rental rates for business account customers. Rental rates of electric cars and vans now match their petrol/diesel equivalent, removing price as a hurdle for renting electric.
A new convenient charging process is also streamlining customer use of EVs, ensuring vehicles are at least 80% charged at the start of a rental and only require 20% charge on return, helping to overcome customer anxiety about charging an electric vehicle ahead of its return.
Europcar’s holistic approach to reducing mobility emissions has also led to increased use of electric cars and e-bikes to support its Deliver & Collect service. Using electric vehicles to drive 1,090,500 miles when delivering and collecting rental vehicles enabled Europcar to save 78,516kg of CO2 in 2024, while the use of e-bikes by Deliver & Collect hikers saved 2,016Kg CO2.
As detailed in the latest Europcar Sustainability Report, the rental business saved a total of 168.7 tonnes CO2 in 2024, equating to 168 passengers taking a return flight from Paris to New York, driving more than one million kilometres in a diesel car or charging 20,436,024 smartphones.
Tom Middleditch, head of electric mobility, said: “For 2025 and beyond, we will continue increasing the proportion of electric and hybrid vehicles on our fleet and find new ways to support business and leisure customers to make the transition to low and ultimately zero tailpipe emission rental.”
