Welsh car rental firm expands into Germany with 28 locations

Nation.Cymru staff

Cardiff-based car rental technology company Final Rentals has expanded into Germany, offering vehicle collection at 28 locations across 22 cities.

The launch follows a partnership agreement signed in June with CITY-CAR Autovermietung, a German rental company headquartered in Neubrandenburg.

The network covers 10 federal states and includes Berlin, Hamburg, Leipzig and Dresden, alongside smaller towns and cities such as Greifswald, Bamberg and Bayreuth.

Founded in 2003, CITY-CAR operates around 2,000 vehicles across eastern and northern Germany. Some of its branches are run by local licence partners.

Final Rentals operates a franchise model, supplying independent rental businesses with booking technology and access to international sales channels.

Its booking system connects operators’ fleets to the company’s platform and online travel agencies, allowing customers to book vehicles supplied by local businesses.

The company was founded by Ammar Akhtar in 2019 and says its network now spans more than 65 countries and over 200 locations.

Mr Akhtar said the German partnership allowed it to launch in several cities at once.

“Germany is a market every car rental brand wants to be in, and we wanted to enter it with a meaningful presence from day one,” he said.

“Rather than starting in one city and building from there, we’ve launched across 22 cities, giving us a network of local operators from the outset.”

He said the business’s role was to provide technology and international reach to operators with local knowledge.

The German locations are now available to book through the company’s German website.