car rental receptionist

The work

Car rental receptionists handle all the administration and enquiries involved with renting vehicles to businesses and the public. They may also be known as reservation, leasing, customer service or sales agents.

Their work generally involves:

• dealing with customer enquiries about the availability and cost of vehicles
• taking bookings
• explaining the terms of rental or leasing agreements
• completing paperwork with the customer
• taking the customer to the vehicle to point out any existing bumps or scrapes and show them any special features
• checking mileage and inspecting for any damage when vehicles are returned
• taking payment
• providing ongoing service and sales support, if dealing with regular business leasing accounts.

Receptionists with foreign language skills may deal with international clients.

Hours and Environment

As a full-time rental receptionist you will usually work 35 to 40 hours a week between the hours of 8am and 6pm, Monday to Saturday. You may need to work shifts if you work for one of the larger car hire companies that provide a 24-hour service at major airports.

You will be based in an office, but may spend some of your time moving vehicles that have been dropped off. You may be provided with a uniform.

Skills and Interests

To be a rental receptionist, you need:

• excellent customer care and communication skills
• a basic understanding of cars
• the ability to deal with complaints in a professional manner
• good organisation and time management
• accuracy and attention to detail
• good computer skills
• good mathematical and cash handling skills
• efficiency under pressure
• sales skils.

Entry

There are no set entry requirements for becoming a rental receptionist. Most employers look for previous experience of customer service and office work. Employers may prefer you to have some GCSEs (A-C)/S grades (1-3) including English and maths, but having the right personality and skills are often considered to be more important than formal qualifications.

You will usually need a full driving licence, with at least a year’s driving experience. Employers often prefer you to be aged 21 or over, for insurance purposes.

Foreign language skills can be useful if you intend to work at an airport, port or tourist destination.

You may be able to get into this job through an apprenticeship scheme. Funding for apprenticeships is available for 16-24 year olds and some over-25s. To find out more, visit www.apprenticeships.org.uk. For information about apprenticeships in other parts of the UK, see Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Training

You will usually be trained on the job by your employer. Your training may include NVQs/SVQs in Customer Service or Business and Administration at levels 1 to 4.

If you work for a member of the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA), you can their Vehicle Rental Operator Skills Certificate.

BVRLA also runs short courses and a management development programme, which could be useful as your career progresses.

Opportunities

As a rental receptionist you could work for one of the large international vehicle rental and leasing companies, which are based all over the UK in most towns and cities, airports and ports. There are also smaller, locally-based companies throughout the UK.

Jobs are advertised in the local press, Jobcentre Plus and on employers' own websites.

With experience, you could be promoted to supervisory and management roles. If you gain experience in business leasing accounts, you could be promoted to account manager, or move into fleet management (see Car Fleet Manager profile for details).

Annual Income

Figures are intended as a guideline only. 

Rental receptionists usually earn £11,000 to £16,000 a year.
Senior rental receptionists or team leaders can earn up to £18,000 to £20,000 a year.

There may be extra shift allowances for working unsocial hours, and bonuses for meeting sales targets.

Further information

River Lodge
Badminton Court
Amersham
Bucks
HP7 ODD
Tel: 01494 434747 Tel: 0800 093 1777

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