Ekar adds 500,000 cars to its fleet

Dubai - Ekar provides users on-demand access to a network of thousands of carshare and subscription leasing vehicles within its 'Self-Drive Super App.'

Ekar has announced that it has integrated with CarPro, a car rental fleet management platform, enabling car rental and leasing companies with over 500,000 rental cars to digitally rent cars via the ekar platform.

CarPro will integrate ekar's Mobility OS natively within its fleet management software, allowing car rental companies to instantly enable vehicles onto the ekar app and benefit from a fully contactless rental process, increased fleet utilization, driver behavior analytics, and real-time vehicle tracking.

Consumers can enjoy new combustible and electric vehicles from economy to premium options. Increasing fleet size also means that an available car is more likely to be around the corner to rent and unlock via carsharing or door-delivered via subscription.

“The car rental industry is going through a transformational phase as a result of the pandemic as tourist and business travel continues to suffer. Car rental companies are now embracing more innovative mobility options, recognizing that traditional rental processes are costly, inefficient, and sub-optimal in a digital world that values contact-free solutions," said Vilhelm Hedberg, founder of ekar.

“Ekar’s integration with CarPro enables car rental tenants to add their rental cars onto the ekar carshare or subscription platform at the click of a button. On average, this produces double the revenue compared to traditional hires. This flexibility optimises utilisation for our partners, opens up renting to otherwise unknown commuter and youth markets, and provides the flexibility to charge lower rates without losing brand pricing identity. The general public benefits from thousands of more cars available for micro or long-term digital rentals,” added Hedberg.

Kieron Chalder, CEO of CarPro Systems, said: “Our partnership with ekar marks the latest enhancement to the CarPro product suite, as we continue to support rental businesses to optimize their vehicle utilization and adapt to evolving customer demands. The current market conditions have accelerated fleet digitalisation, and we are pleased to act as a technology enabler for our partners, giving them the tools they need to remain competitive in a market that increasingly demands flexibility.”

Since its inception in 2016, ekar has grown from a 15-vehicle pilot program with Etihad Airways to a multi-country service used by more than 250,000 customers and booked around 1.33 million trips. Ekar was also the highest utilised free-floating carshare service in the world in 2019. Ekar's vision is to improve the way people consume transportation and is achieving scale by SaaS-enabling car rental and leasing companies via ekar's Mobility OS.

rohma@khaleejtimes.com