In 1918 a 22-year old Walter Jacobs founded the world's first ever car rental company Rent-A-Ford in Chicago, Illinois.
With an initial fleet of twelve Model-T Fords, he set about selling the concept of drive-it-yourself car rental to the public.
Five years later he sold his company to one Sandor Herz, an emigree from central Europe who changed his name to John D. Hertz an gave it to the company. Today Hertz is the world's largest car rental company, handling more than 30 million rentals a year in more than 7000 locations worldwide.
Hertz is also the world's largest purchaser of vehicles with a fleet of more than 500 000.
Our continued success reflects tradition and service that is designed to put customer behind the wheel with a minimum of fuss. This is the backbone of Hertz experience - fast, efficient and simple to use.