Daimler Truck Financial Services launched a rental business for truck and bus customers in Brazil. The new company, Mercedes-Benz Locações Caminhões e Ônibus, is a partnership between Daimler Truck Financial Services subsidiary Banco Mercedes-Benz do Brasil, the manufacturer Mercedes-Benz do Brasil and the Mercedes-Benz dealer network. The company’s initial focus will be on small and medium-sized fleet owners.

In Brazil, the company will offer rental contracts for 100 Mercedes-Benz Actros, Atego and Accelo vehicles with terms of 36, 48 and 60 months. Rental packages will include preventive maintenance, fleet management, documentation, insurance and connectivity services and be available in more than 180 dealerships.

“The start of the rental business in Brazil is another milestone in our service strategy that make our customers business easier and more reliable by bundling our products with services like maintenance, insurance and telematic services on one bill,” Stephan Unger, CEO of Daimler Truck Financial Services, said. “For us, this is another step in our transformation from a leasing and financing company to a commercial vehicle solution provider.”

According to Daimler Truck Financial Services, Brazil is the largest truck market in South America. However, the rental market in Brazil corresponds to only 2% of circulating heavy trucks fleet compared to 25% in the U.S.

“We studied the market and brought the solution to our customers who are at the center of our decisions. For each of them, a customized product will be offered, designed exactly to meet the needs of their business,” Hilke Janssen, president and CEO of Banco Mercedes-Benz and the new company Mercedes-Benz Locações Caminhões e Ônibus, said.

“With our rental offer, we continue to bring new and bundled services to the market,” Bernd Barth, head of Daimler Truck Financial Services in Europe and South America, said. “This will create value to the ecosystem of our customers and increase the ease and flexibility of conducting their businesses.”

Daimler Truck Financial Services supports the sale of Daimler Truck commercial vehicles in 17 markets worldwide with leasing, financing and insurance. The company plans to extend rental offerings to other markets.