Leading car rental company Avis UK has announced an increased presence across the UK’s major transport hubs to assist travellers on the final leg of journeys that have been disrupted by the volcanic ash cloud. Avis understands the huge stress that has been placed on its UK customers and has implemented procedures to assist thousands of travellers who are making their way back to the UK by Eurostar and ferry.

To assist passengers who are returning to the UK by Eurostar and ferry, Avis UK has:

·      An extensive station at Ebbsfleet to meet passengers from the Eurostar, offering returning Britons the chance to by-pass the capital on the final leg of their journey
·      Established a 24 hour service at Dover, Portsmouth and Southampton ports. This includes extending the opening hours of its stations and providing an “on call” service for customers
·      Waived the one-way charge on rentals from these three ports
·      Increased the number of vehicles it has at Dover, Southampton, Portsmouth and Ebbsfleet to meet the expected rise in demand for car rental at these key transport hubs

Opening hours for the three Avis port stations are listed below:

Portsmouth:

·      0730-1800 - Regular Opening Hours
·      1830-22.30 -These rentals will be serviced by Southampton through car delivery or minibus transportation for larger groups
·      22.30-07.30 - A number will be provided for customers to call a member of staff

Southampton:
·      07.30-22.00 - Regular Opening Hours
·      22.30-07.30 - A number will be provided for customers to call a member of staff

Dover:
·      08.00- 20.00 - Regular Opening Hours
·      20.00- 08.00 - There will be a member of staff on call to respond to customer calls.

Nick Mountfield, Head of Marketing at Avis UK, comments:  “Avis is committed to fulfilling the travel needs of its UK customers affected by the current disruption to air travel caused by the volcanic cloud.  The additional measures we have implemented are designed to make the final leg of our customers’ journey as stress-free as possible. We are conscious that people arriving at these key transport hubs are likely to be fatigued from arduous rail and ferry journeys, so the provision of extra staff and availability is our way of helping travellers get home as quickly as possible. Also, with airspace now open we would like to assure customers that we have good fleet availability at UK airports and are fully open for bookings at www.avis.co.uk”