AJ Rent A Car's cheap Billycar rent service now available nationwide

AJ Rent A Car Co., the second largest hire car agency in South Korea, said it will be launching nationwide rent service in cheaper rates currently only available in Jeju Island, a move that could bring about landscape change in the local car rental market as low-cost carriers had in the airline industry.

The company said it would expand the operation of Billycar, the industry’s first low-cost car hire service that made a splash in the resort island of Jeju, to major cities across the nation. The service will be available in branches of Seoul, Incheon, Bucheon, and Ilsan of Gyeonggi Proince, as well as cities of Busan, Daegu and Gwangju. Billycars can be rented out at half the price of the normal rates in the mainland and at a third in Jeju.

Under the Billycar program, a customer can rent an Avante MD LPG vehicle for 32,000 won ($28) per day on weekdays during the non-peak season, less than half of the standard 66,000 won AJ charges for the same model even with a 40 percent weekday discount. The Billycar service offers a Sonata YF LPG vehicle for 49,000 won, far lower than 99,000 won charged by other rental car companies.

The price gap widens further in the biggest rent market of Jeju. With the Billycar service, a customer can rent an Avante MD vehicle for a mere 12,500 won a day whereas other companies charge 38,500 won. Renting a Sonata vehicle costs 16,500 won in Billycar and 45,500 won from Lotte Rental.

The rates can be significantly lower in Billycar through a cost-saving business model of using car models of more than two years and limited staff. Application and payment all has to be made through mobile or online. Customers also personally must pick up and return the car for hire.

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