Q4 ERA/RentalTracker survey: confidence is improving

It’s too early to report a full return to confidence in Europe’s rental sector, but the latest ERA/IRN RentalTracker survey does show an improving trend all the main measures: current business conditions, quarterly activity year-on-year, capital investment plans and fleet utilisation.

More than 105 companies operating in Europe completed the survey between 15 December and 19 January. (As always, we thank respondents and rental associations for distributing the survey.)

There was a positive balance opinion of +20.4% on ‘business conditions now’ (38% reporting improving conditions, 17% reporting worsening conditions, and 45% seeing no change.) That’s the highest positive balance since the second quarter of 2022, when the pandemic bounce-back was underway.

In any of the photos, click on the ‘gallery view’ icon within the photo to see all six graphs.

There was a similar +21% balance when Q4 2025 activity levels were compared to the same quarter in 2024. That follows three surveys between June 2024 and June 2025 with either a small or zero positive balance.

Time utilisation also seems to be improving, with a +29.3% positive balance of opinion on time utilisation during Q4 2025. Only 16% saw a decline in utilisation, with a sharp increase in those reporting improving utilisation - from 31% in the second quarter of 2025 to 45% in Q4.

Capital investment plans

Asked about capital investment in 2026, there was also a healthy +17% balance of opinion, with 39% expecting to spend more this year than last compared to 22% forecasting a lower outlay. In Q2 last year 30% were expecting to spend more in 2026, so the improvement in sentiment is significant. That +17% balance of opinion is the highest since Q2 2024 and has been building steadily since then.

The survey also finds the industry with its most positive view looking forward for more than three years, with a +48% positive balance of opinion: 58% are expecting things to be better a year from now and only 10% were expecting them to be worse.

Of course, a positive view on future activity tells you something about current conditions, but the fact remains that the respondents were expressing the greatest confidence on future business conditions since the first quarter of 2022.

Recruitment intentions are always a good indicator of business sentiment, and here there remains a desire to recruit more staff: 39% want to add staff in the first quarter of 2026 against the 8% expecting to reduce their staffing.

That high level of demand for staff has been maintained ever since 2021 and reflects wider challenges in business to recruit and retain workforce.

Regional variations

When it comes to results for different countries and regions, remember that the results should be viewed in the context of relatively small number of responses – given that we have 103 in total.

What is notable about the survey results is the positive views held by companies in Spain and Italy. In five of the six metrics on business sentiment (see the tables), Iberian companies were the most positive – a remarkable, consistent result.

Sometimes positive sentiment reflects an improvement on a dire situation, but in the case of Italy and Spain the Q4 results follow similar levels of confidence from the Q2 survey earlier in 2025. There is a sustained level of confidence in these markets.

France, Germany and the UK/Republic of Ireland are below the European average in virtually all the measures of business confidence. No surprise, perhaps, given the lacklustre performance of the economies of these countries.

The results for multinational companies were mixed: above average when it comes to looking 12 months ahead 61% expect conditions to be better - and also positive on the trend for fleet utilisation. However, the biggest companies were also the least likely to increase investment in 2026 and among the least likely to be increasing their workforce.

There are so many determinants of business confidence and so many wider geopolitical and economic uncertainties, that drawing a definitive conclusion from the Q4 survey is dangerous to do. But there is no question: for the moment at least, confidence is growing in Europe’s rental industry.

(Note: to view all six graphs, click on the ‘gallery view’ icon shown on the top right of all the images.)