Our depots will all be closed for the four days of the Queen’s Jubilee bank holiday from Thursday June 2 to Sunday June 5 inclusive.
Please book as soon as possible if you will need a vehicle during that period.
You will need to collect your rental by June 1 at the latest, although vehicles can be returned to our depots at any time throughout the holiday period.
If you have any celebrations planned for that period we hope you enjoy them.
The climate change activists protests have disrupted fuel supplies, particularly diesel for motorists. However, we have fuel on site to ensure all our vehicles are topped up before they go out for rental.
So if customers have had difficulty topping up their rental vehicles before returning them, we can do it.
However, the prices we are charged by our supplier are higher than they are at an ordinary, public garage, and this is reflected in your charges when you return a vehicle.
Hopefully, this will only be a fairly short term issue and prices will return to normal in due course but in the meantime it may be worth trying to top up your rental before you return it.
Finally, we have been able to order 19 new cars!
They will be with us over a period of between two weeks and four months, a sign that life is returning to some kind of normal.
We also have a couple of new vans, two od them tippers and one a medium wheelbase.
Fuel price rises are, sadly, affecting our costs and we have had to pass some of this on to customers renting diesel-powered vehicles.
We always rent our vehicles with a full tank, so there is no way of avoiding this for the time being.
As yet, there has not been a significant downturn in vehicle rentals for the various holidays coming up, although we have noticed that there are fewer rentals for longer holidays.
With the removal of legally-enforced Covid restrictions people are starting to catch up on visits to relatives and friends they may not have been able to see for almost two years.
At the same time the Easter holidays will soon be upon us and many people will be looking forward to a relaxing holiday break.
All this is already putting pressure on our bookings especially for cars.
So if you are planning a trip over Easter and you will need a car, please book with us as soon as possible.
Despite the removal of legal restrictions scientists and health professionals are still advising a degree of caution including self-isolation after a positive Covid test.
It makes sense, therefore, for us to continue with the precautions we introduced in our offices at the height of the pandemic.
So for your protection and our staff’s we shall keep our Perspex screens, sanitiser regime and where appropriate will be asking customers to continue wearing masks.
Stay safe everyone
The removal of many of the restrictions imposed by Covid has prompted more demand for vehicles as businesses try to return to normal.
However, it will take time to recover from the slump in car and van manufacture that was caused by Covid and in part by supply chain issues.
While Robertsons is doing its best to diversify its fleet, sourcing replacement vehicles even by selecting from a wider range of makers is proving difficult.
We do try to keep some vehicles in reserve for private rental customers but whether you are renting for business or personal reasons please understand that it will take time for things to get back to normal.
Please give us as much notices as you can when you want to rent and we will do everything we can to help.
After the lockdowns of the last 18 months, it is no surprise that people are looking forward to seeing relatives they haven’t met for some time over the festive season.
We are seeing a huge rise in booking rentals for both cars and people carriers for the run-up to Christmas and are close to being fully booked.
To avoid disappointment, we are asking customers to please book a vehicle as soon as they can.
The minimum period for a rental is seven days if your rental coincides with Christmas Day or Boxing Day.
Latest time for your rental collection is by 1pm on December 24 after which we will be closed until December 29.
This month we have experienced a sharp rise in the numbers of vans being booked despite having added four new ones to our fleet.
Yes, we have four new long wheelbase Maxus vans.
The two main drivers are the usual added demand for vans from the various parcel delivery companies and this year the Cop26 climate change event in Glasgow has added to the pressure.
Police forces, including Essex, have been asked to supply officers for the event and we have so far reserved 15 people carriers for them.
So, if you are expecting to need a van in the next couple of months please be aware that we will need at least a week’s warning.
In the meantime to let you know we are still using all the Covid safety measures that we have put in place in the office.
Some people obviously need a car as a condition of their work, but if your car is mainly used for leisure is it really worth all the annual expense?
No matter how infrequently you use a car you still have to pay for road tax, insurance, and MOT fees at the same rate. Then there are the depreciation costs.
Given the increasing pressure on household budgets this could become unaffordable.
Renting a vehicle only when you need it could be a more sustainable option, not only for your household expenses but also to help the environment.
We think we are one of the very few rental companies that will rent out vehicles to people up to the age of 78, where most have a cut-off point of 70.
So if you are beginning to think about whether you actually need to own a car, why not talk to us and find out more about how rental works.
Despite the difficulties and delays with ordering, we have managed to purchase a number of new vans!
They are Maxus long wheelbase transit-type vans.
Given the current shortage of HGV drivers some businesses are turning to using deliveries with smaller vans for which an UGV licence is not needed.
However, as we approach peak season for vans from parcel delivery companies in the run-up to Christmas this will add to the demand.
If you know you are going to need additional delivery vans in the next few months please let us know as soon as possible and we will do our best to ensure you have what you need.
