There was once a time when many people often took for granted the lengths car rental companies go to when cleaning a vehicle. But these days, thanks to COVID-19, more people are demanding to know how this is done and if it has been done to the vehicle they are about to take out on their trip.
This is good because doing so can really open up your mind to understanding the real yet still unrecognized benefits of this cleanliness. The sad truth is that in some places, one out of five drivers do not even clean the inside of their own car!
Meanwhile, rental companies around the world have quietly developed processes and a set standard that provide benefits in unexpected ways. These include:
1. Low viral transmission
Rental disinfection processes pay very close attention to common contact surfaces. This includes the steering wheel, door handles, dashboards and more. Obviously, these areas are the most common places for all sorts of transmissible diseases to accumulate as a vehicle is used by multiple drivers.
It only makes sense that these particular areas are sprayed, wiped and rigorously decontaminated. And not only that, this process will use really potent chemicals specifically designed to kill microorganisms while keeping a car’s sleek interior unblemished. (And as a side note, this knowledge comes handy if you are about to share a ride with a germaphobe.)
2. Pest control
When you are taking a rental on a road trip, eating in the car can sometimes be inevitable. And no matter how courteous you can be in taking out a lot of the trash yourself, there will be little crumbs that can attract insects and other pests.
These pests, in turn, are also bringing their own share of bacteria. That is why dedicated car rental companies go the extra mile to vacuum interiors and really sweep away anything that could lure in unwanted little passengers. Whereas most car owners do this maybe once a week, rental services do it every day!
3. Mini safe zone.
Lastly, if you are the type of traveler who has everything to prove they are clean and virus-free, then a quality car rental seals the deal. Good rental services always have some way of showing that their vehicles undergo regular cleaning (whether it is bearing a seal or even getting the local government’s own stamp of approval on it).
For example, if you are traveling in between places with very different quarantine levels, then having a rental car that bears such a seal is going to make it a lot easier through checkpoints. The car’s cleanliness also means you have one less thing on your trip to fuss about when doing your own disinfection checklist.
Speaking of checklists though, that is precisely what you might want to look for when gauging the quality of a rental service’s cleaning process. Many of the most expensive, global brands count anywhere between 15-20 items for their disinfection process.
However, such lists can be found even among cheaper car rental companies in many parts of the world. All it takes is a thorough study of standard procedures, a little eye for detail and a good deal of common sense!
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