Eco car hire firm Green Motion has further expanded its UK network with the opening on a new Croydon outlet in South London.

The new rent a car location is conveniently sited on the A23 Brighton Road and is in easy reach of major bus routes and railways stations.

Green Motion Croydon will offer a wide variety of vehicles; from small city cars including the new congestion charge exempt Fiat 500 Twin Air to the luxury of Blue Efficiency models from Mercedes.

The Founder and Managing Director or Green Motion, Richard Lowden said: “We’re really pleased to welcome Croydon to the Green Motion network.

“This is a highly important location which allows us to reach our forever expanding retail, leisure and corporate customer base.”

As well as expanding its network here in the UK, Green Motion has also expanded its franchise into Mexico at end of last year with further international sites planned in France, Spain and the USA.

For further information on green car hire in www.greenmotion.com.

Green car rental firm, Green Motion has announced that one of its franchise branches is now under new management.

The premier franchise supporting Manchester Airport is now under new management as the firm-which specialises in renting low emission cars from the likes of BMW, Citroen, Honda, Lexus, Renault, Toyota and Volkswagen-explains that the previous franchise management did not meet the company’s expectations.

Hinting at some negative feedback from customers in the past, Richard Lowden, the Founder and Managing Director of Green Motion Car and Van Hire said: “Customer service forms the heart of Green Motion’s ethos alongside our drive to deliver low CO₂ and highly competitive vehicle rental. While a vast majority of customers have had a good experience at our Manchester Airport location, the former franchise operated by Blue Beckon Limited failed to meet our high expectations in several areas of operational management and customer service.”

Lowden went on to say: “With effect of today Green Motion Manchester Airport, located at the Radisson Blu Hotel, will be under new management – I am confident that the new team will exceed customers (old and new) expectations in relation to the quality of service and also price.”

The firm requests that if any customers have feedback good or bad, they can contact them either directly through www.greenmotion.co.uk (customerservices@greenmotion.com) or via one of the consumer forums such as Trip Advisor.com)

Green Motion Manchester Airport operates from the Radisson Blu Hotel, which is connected to both terminals 1 and 2 by skyway bridgeds and is within a few minutes’ walk from terminal 3.

Green Motion was founded in 2005, and has steadily developed a national network throughout the United Kingdom and now offer vehicle hire services at many of the UK’s major cities and business gateways, including all London Airports.

The UK’s first and only green car hire company has now opened a new office in the centre of Leicester.

Green Motion has completely refurbished the former St Nicholas Circle petrol site which had laid in disrepair for eight years adjacent to the Holiday Inn Hotel. The company’s founder and managing director Richard Lowden spoke of his delight at adding a further location to the firm’s expanding network.

“We have already received a tremendous amount of interest in our environmentally friendly rental service from local government, corporate and retail customers,” he said.

“It’s fantastic to see our customers taking a real interest in tackling the environmental challenges that are facing the global community.”

Green Motion allows both corporate and retail customers the chance to hire the latest vehicles including the Blue Efficiency range from Mercedes, Eco Drive from Fiat, Eco2 from Renault, the Bluemotion range from Volkswagen and a host of eco-friendly models from the likes of Citroen and Hyundai. Each vehicle on the fleet boasts impressive fuel consumption allowing customers to benefit from fuel savings while assisting the environment.

The company also has a meet-and-greet facility at East Midlands Airport.

The new zero emission vehicle from Citroen – the C1 ev’ie – will feature in Green Motion’s fleet the company has announced.

The world’s first and only low carbon dioxide (CO2) car and van hire company announced its intention to include the vehicle in its line-up after it was launched at the Lancaster Hotel in Hyde Park.

The car is based on the traditional Citroen C1 chassis and boasts a performance of up to 60mph with a range between 60 and 75 miles on a full charge. The C1 ev’ie is considered the first vehicle of its type with a four seat carrying capacity and has all the safety features normally associated with the C1 vehicle such as passenger and driver airbags as well as ABS and full front, rear and side crumple zones.

According to Green Motion, the vehicle will initially be placed at their London, Leeds and Manchester locations before expanding to the rest of its network later this year.

Green Motion – Britain’s low CO₂ vehicle rental company – today was welcomed as the latest member of the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA).

Following Green Motion’s launch the company applied for membership of the BVRLA and following careful review by the association membership has been granted.  Founder of Green Motion, Richard Lowden, expressed his delight at being awarded membership of the BVLRA and said ‘Green Motion’s membership of the BVRLA further strengthens our organisation’s commitment to deliver the highest levels of customer service to both our retail and corporate hirers.’  Richard went on to say ‘as well as offering the choice to hire green/low CO₂ cars and vans our customers now have the peace of mind and reassurance that they are working within an organisation that has signed up to and abides by the BVRLA’s Rental Charter and Code of Conduct.

BVRLA – Rental Charter
As a member of the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association we pledge to provide for our customers

• Complete details of pricing, ensuring customers are aware of all aspects of charging before commitment to the rental contract
• The best price available to suit customers’ specific needs
• Vehicles that are serviced and inspected to the manufacturer’s operating manual as a minimum standard and complying with all statutory requirements
• Vehicles that are clean and inspected for safety from a selection of low mileage, current model vehicles
• An insurance level guaranteeing protection for third party personal injury and property damage
• Commitment to the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association’s Code of Conduct
• An effective complaints procedure with access to a conciliation service administered by the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association

Green Motion specialises in offering lo CO₂ vehicle solutions, from short and medium term rental through to contract hire and leasing, to retail and corporate customers.  Green Motion offers its customers a choice of quality vehicles including Bluemotion models from Volkswagen (Polo, Golf, Passat and Sharan), 1, 3 and 5 series from BMW’s EfficientDynamic range and the luxury of the Lexus hybrid including the RX 4×4 and GS Saloon.

For further information on hiring a low CO₂ car or van from Green Motion please call their Central Reservations team on 0333 888 4000 or visit www.greenmotion.com

For further information on the BVRLA please visit www.bvrla.co.uk

Europe’s first and only low CO₂ vehicle rental company, Green Motion, today confirmed that it is changing the telephone number of its Central Reservations department to a new 03 prefix standard charge rate number – 0333 888 4000 from its existing 0870 number.

Following in the footsteps of the BBC who recently changed their main telephone number, Green Motion’s Founder, Richard Lowden, said ‘the cost of operating an 0870 number has recently increased for the customers with them being charged anything from 6p** per minute from a landline.  This amount is increased when calling from mobiles/cell phones. 0870 numbers allow revenue sharing and, at present, aren’t included in free or discounted minutes.  The new 03 prefix means the customers will only pay standard call charges -03 numbers are not revenue sharing and the cost of a call will be the same as national calls to 01 or 02 numbers.*

Green Motion is the UK’s first national rental company to change its Central Reservations number with multi national players, including Avis, Hertz and Enterprise still operating  087 numbers.  Richard Lowden went on to say ‘Green Motion is delighted to have another first in the UK daily rental market with their customers not only being able to enjoy the benefit of hiring low CO₂ cars and vans at highly competitive rates but also not being charged a premium to call our Central Reservations department.

Green Motion’s Central Reservations number has been changed from 08700 600 600 to 0333 888 4000.

Green Motion, a truly environmentally focused vehicle rental company, has further expanded its green proposition working in partnership with Trees4Good.

Green Motion Vehicle Rental offers you the opportunity to hire the latest in low CO2 vehicles including Polo, Golf and Passat Bluemotion from Volkswagen, 1, 3 and 5 series EfficientDynamic range from BMW, hybrid models including the Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, stop start technology on the C1, C2, C3 and C4 from Citroen the Eco 2 Megane and New Laguna from Renault.
Our commitment to the environment does not stop there – we have recently teamed up with Trees4Good with the pledge ‘you rent a car – we plant a tree’.

Planting trees is one of the simplest and most effective ways of helping to reduce the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere and working with Trees4Good not only tackles the environmental issues but helps the indigenous populations of Borneo and Brazil to create a sustainable lifestyle, providing income that in turn supports their education and healthcare.

Green Motion invite you to play your part in reducing your personal/company carbon footprint and plant a tree today.  For a £2 donation Trees4Good will plant a Jatropha tree on your behalf which will, over its life of between 30 and 40 years, absorb, on average, 24kg of CO2 per annum.

Please visit http://www.trees4good.com/buy-a-tree-packs.html and play your part today. It costs £2.

Green Motion will be celebrating each benefactor by adding your name (company or personal) to the Trees4Good virtual forest which will be featured on greenmotion.com at the beginning of August.

For further information about Green Motion Vehicle Rental and Trees4Good please visit

www.greenmotion.com or www.trees4good.com .

Thursday 22nd May saw the UK’s largest dedicated green vehicle motor show arrive in Liverpool. The event promoted by the Green Car Guide saw motor manufacturers and environmentally focused automotive operations present their latest innovations and services.

Exhibiting were motor manufacturers including BMW with their EfficientDynamic range, Volkswagen with their Polo and Golf Bluemotion models and Citroen with their low CO₂/stop and start C1, C2, C3 and C4.

The show welcomed many large organisations including Tesco and British Telecom who are focused on reducing their company’s carbon footprint.

Green Motion – Europe’s first fully environmentally friendly vehicle rental company – took the opportunity to promote its latest eco initiative – you rent a car, we plant a tree. Not satisfied with offering its customers a choice of vehicles that boast the latest in low CO₂ and fuel saving technologies and adhering to its own all embracing environmental policy, Green Motion has taken a further step in its environmental evolution.

To promote its new tree planting initiative, each visitor to the Green Car Guide Live 2008 show was presented with a live evergreen oak sapling which offset the emissions associated to each journey made to the show.

Green Motion also featured its flagship eco vehicle, the Polo Bluemotion, which boasts the lowest CO₂ of any standard vehicle of 99g/km.

 In recent weeks we’ve had numerous reports about some of the leading car hire companies in the world turning to green cars for their fleets from Europcar to Green Motion. Well, now you can add another name to the list as Hertz expands its list of vehicles with a green theme.

As the busy summer travel season begins, Hertz has purchased 3,400 Toyota Prius models in an effort to keep on top of consumer demand and to drive down its costs. It should come as no surprise that the company is anticipating greater demand for hybrid cars with fuel prices reaching $4 a gallon in the USA and around £1.20 a litre in the UK.

Indeed Hertz is not alone in announcing further hybrids to its fleet. Enterprise Rent-A-Car has also expanded its offering – there are approximately 4,000 hybrid vehicles in its fleet of 1.1million. Vehicles from Japanese manufacturers such as Toyota and Honda are proving particularly popular with recent fuel-efficient models from the likes of KIA, Mazda and Hyundai also winning customer support.

Hertz is hoping that hybrid cars can help the company turn the corner financially. In the first three months of 2008 it suffered a net loss of $57.8million – although that was less than during the first three months of 2007 when it lost $62.6million. The summer months are traditionally much more profitable for car hire companies and Hertz hopes that the hybrid vehicles in its fleet can help reduce outgoings while maximising its rewards.

Green Motion is pleased to confirm that it has recently awarded its Nottingham franchise territory to local businessman, Gurdev Bath. Gurdev and his family have been looking for a suitable business to invest in over the last year or so and found out about franchise opportunities with Green Motion at the beginning of this year.

After undertaking a tremendous amount of research of the marketplace, Gurdev identified that there was a need and market for environmentally friendly vehicle rental in Nottingham and proceeded to purchase one of Green Motion’s premier territories.

Green Motion Nottingham will commence operations in early September 2008 and will be located in the heart of the city, taking up residency at the former Budget Rent a Car premises at 50 Lower Parliament Street (opposite the Oceana Entertainment venue).

The founder of Green Motion, Richard Lowden, said ‘it is great to have Gurdev and his family on board. I am confident that as a result of their in-depth and successful business experience, local knowledge and relationships, that they will develop Green Motion Nottingham into a location we will be proud of.’ Richard went on to say ‘as each day passes Green Motion receives an increasing amount of interest from large corporate to private individuals who are genuinely concerned with regards to climate change and who are looking to play their part in making a difference.’

The owner of Green Motion Nottingham, Gurdev Bath, said ‘we are delighted that we have been awarded the franchise territory of Green Motion Nottingham and we are extremely excited with the opportunity of bringing green car and van rental to our local area.’

As well as the Nottingham territory, Gurdev Bath has also acquired the rights to open a second franchise supporting Nottingham Airport (formerly East Midlands Airport).