Rising gas prices are pushing some Americans to opt for electric vehicles when they are renting cars.
Car Rental Gateway, an online car rental platform headquartered in London that also operates in the United States, reported seeing a 16% increase in electric and hybrid car rentals in March.
Additionally, Hertz spokeswoman Lauren Luster told USA TODAY that the company saw a nearly 25% increase in requests for EV reservations from rideshare drivers from February to March.
The finding comes as gas prices rose to an average of $4.55 per gallon on May 7, up from $4.30 a week earlier on April 30, according to AAA.
“GasBuddy live ticking data showing the national average now at $4.57/gal while diesel is at $5.67/gal- both of these may represent a short-term top as I expect prices could start declining into the weekend as oil falls- whether or not it sticks- watch US/Iran talks,” Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, wrote in an X post.
The USA TODAY Cars Team took a look at the pros and cons of renting EVs.
The website CarRentalLab.com lists the following pros for renting an EV:
TravelersUnited, a nonprofit organization that lobbies for travelers in all modes of transportation, identified the following challenges that can come with renting an EV: