SHARP rises in fuel duty introduced by the Budget hit yet another nail into the coffin of free collection and delivery for daily rental vehicles. Rental companies have come under increasing pressure to recoup the expense of providing collection and delivery services, estimated to cost £23.10 over a 10-mile distance.

Two factors account for the cost of collection and delivery - the wages of two drivers to provide the service and the cost of the fuel used in the support car picking up the delivery driver. With a 4p a litre/18.2p per gallon hike in the price of unleaded petrol and diesel, rental companies will no longer assimilate into the standard rental rate the expense of value added services.

John Leigh, managing director of EuroDollar, said: 'The cost of collection and delivery will become a non-negotiable position, and where you have seen this cost absorbed within the pricing of the rental, this will no longer be the case. You can expect to see this as a stand alone cost, over and above the price of the rental.'