Covid 19 coronavirus: Hundreds of rental cars parked in Queenstown

Some of the hundreds of rental vehicles now in storage behind Queenstown airport. Photo / Stephen Jaquiery

Hundreds of rental cars are parked up at Queenstown Airport and Remarkables Park, as the Covid-19 pandemic puts a brake on business.

Lockdown stalled any chance of rental cars being allowed out, with only essential travel permitted.

It has meant the fleets of rental cars usually seen around Otago have been parked up.

Act Now Car Rentals owner Norm Fagg, of Queenstown, said it was a matter of waiting.

"It has done everything it possibly can to me. I am just a one-man band."

He said he had two cars out when lockdown was called and one car was stranded outside Christchurch, with the Swedish renters intending to fly home when possible.

• Covid19.govt.nz: The Government's official Covid-19 advisory website

Act Now has a fleet of 35 cars, which would normally be in high demand.

"All the people I had have cancelled, so I have no future revenue in the foreseeable future."

He said Alert Level 2 would enable him to get back to work, but he questioned who would be able to afford to rent a car or go away, with many in Queenstown potentially losing their jobs or having reduced income.