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Duke’s Rental Car Partnerships Provide Perks

Staff, faculty and students can get special rates through Enterprise and National

When the Carolinas received an onslaught of rain in early October and roads flooded, Duke senior sourcing manager Roger Lewis was in Florida, wondering how he was going to get home.

Lewis and his wife, Kathy, were vacationing in Key West, and due to major flooding in South Carolina, their Amtrak train ride home was cancelled. Buying two last-minute plane tickets would exceed $700.

“I started getting really concerned about how we were going to get back,” Lewis said. “Neither one of us are very big fans of flying.”

He turned to National Car Rental, which has a partnership with Duke. Duke staff, faculty and students age 21 and older can receive special rates when they rent a car through National or Enterprise Rent-A-Car. The program can be used for business and personal travel.

Duke community members can potentially receive reduced rental car rates, the ability to rent cars in certain countries abroad, $1 million in liability insurance for free if traveling only for business, and more, depending on the type of car and trip distance.

Lewis paid about $90 to rent a Volkswagen Passat through National for the two-day, 15-hour drive back to Raleigh, taking alternative routes around flooded I-95. He received unlimited mileage, and the ability to drop the car off at a different location (Raleigh-Durham International Airport) at no extra charge.

“Just having options to get back was probably the most important thing,” Lewis said. “It’s no more difficult than renting a car any other way. You’re just getting some enhanced benefits.”

Duke sourcing manager Adam Barnes, who oversees Duke’s rental car company partnerships, said Duke employees should always read the fine print and closely evaluate whether to accept free car upgrades that may affect available perks.

Barnes said he is considering using the rental car program to take his daughter on college tours next year.

“It’s a great sightseeing opportunity, and if you don’t want the wear and tear on your own vehicle, Duke’s contracts afford all types of cars,” Barnes said.

Duke employees can find additional car rental information on the Duke Procurement website by signing in with their NetID and password. There, they can find the links to the National and Enterprise reservation webpages, which automatically incorporate the “Duke University Business Use” designation. This designation can also be used for personal travel.

For additional questions about using the rental car program, email procurement@duke.edu or call (919) 684-4010.