Rent-A-WreckFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Rent-A-Wreck franchise requires a total initial investment of $190K – $2.6M, including a $30K franchise fee. The 2025 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). SBA 7(a) loans show a 3.8% charge-off rate across 29 loans[1]. Verdict grade: B. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $190K – $2.6M
- 22nd pct Automotive
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- 24th pct Automotive
- Royalty
- N/A
- Units
- 48
- 17th pct Automotive
- SBA default
- 3.8%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Automotive · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Automotive avg · No shading = within ±15% · Red = >15% below avg · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Started franchising in 2025. Newer systems carry more uncertainty but may offer better territories.
Bottom line
- Total investment $190K – $2.6M including a $30K franchise fee.
- Item 19 discloses "Historical" rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
- Verdict B (Above Average) with a risk score of 57/100. SBA loan charge-off rate of 3.8% across 29 loans (well below the franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2024).
- Bankruptcy history disclosed in the FDD. Review Item 4 for details before proceeding.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- NPR Auto Group, LLC
- Parent company
- JJF Management Services, Inc.
- Ultimate parent
- None identified
- CEO title
- President
- Michael DeLorenzo
- CEO experience
- 39 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Incorporated in
- MD
- HQ
- 11411 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852
- Auditor
- Councilor, Buchanan & Mitchell, P.C.
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $2.1M
- vs $1.9M prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
Overview
About
Franchisees operate budget car rental locations, managing fleet acquisition, maintenance, customer bookings, and daily rental operations. Revenue comes from per-day rental fees; profitability depends on fleet utilization, damage recovery, and cost control. Most franchisees compete against major national chains (Enterprise, Hertz) in price-sensitive markets.
- CEO
- Michael DeLorenzo
- Headquarters
- MD
- Founded
- 2004
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 18
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 14 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $25K | $125K | |
| Initial Reservations Deposit | $750 | $25K | |
| Initial Customer Service Deposit | $750 | $3K | |
| Real Estate | $6K | $24K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $2K | $12K | |
| Equipment, Fixtures, Furniture and Signs | $2K | $20K | |
| Rental Vehicles | $125K | $2.3M | |
| Training and Travel Expenses | $2K | $5K | |
| Computer Hardware | $4K | $16K | |
| Computer Software | $0 | $8K | |
| Additional Onsite Computer Software Training | $0 | $4K | |
| Opening Advertising, Deposits, and Miscellaneous Costs | $3K | $5K | |
| Vehicle Insurance | $5K | $50K | |
| Additional Funds - 3 months | $15K | $47K | |
| Total initial investment | $190K | $2.6M |
Line items extracted from FDD Item 7. Ranges reflect the franchisor's stated low and high per line. Total is the sum of line-item lows / highs — actual costs may fall outside this range depending on market and build-out scope.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $190K – $2.6M
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $15K – $47K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $25K – $125K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- the greater of: (a) 4% of Gross Revenues received during …
- Ad fund
- 1.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 5.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty (flat) | greater of 4% of Gross Revenues or monthly minimum royalty ($800-$2,400) |
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $278 |
| Transfer fee | $4K |
| Total fee load | 5.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
This brand's FDD disclosed "Historical" in Item 19 rather than annual gross sales. This metric cannot be directly compared across brands, so we omit it from rankings.
vs Automotive averages
How Rent-A-Wreck Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 48
- Opened
- 2
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 1
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 98%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- +4.4%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -7.8%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 1
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 9 states with active franchisees
The Territory Map
Derived from franchisee contact records. Shows states with at least one current operator. Not where the franchisor is registered to sell new units (that data is re-extracting in a future refresh).
States derived from franchisee contact records (FDD Item 20). Shows states with at least one current operator on file. Full state registration data (Item 12) will appear on a future FDD refresh.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 29
- Loan volume
- $5.5M
- Median loan
- $517K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 3.8%
- rates vary by category · see methodology
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- 100.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 25
- Defaults
- 1
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Rent-A-Wreck's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 3 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 1 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 3-year lending trend
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Rent-A-Wreck operates a shrinking franchise system with litigation-related reputation damage, opaque profitability metrics, and evidence of franchisor operational issues—presenting meaningful risk despite territorial protection.
Litigation (Item 3)
David Schwartz v. JJF Management Services, Inc., Rent-A-Wreck of America, Inc., and Bundy American, LLC. U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland. Dispute over wrongful franchise termination and exclusive territory rights. Multiple appeals and retrials. Final judgment in 2015 favored franchisor. Subsequent contempt finding in 2017 regarding reservation diversion.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
Disclosed in last 7 years
Bundy American, LLC (franchisor's former parent, merged into franchisor in 2025 Corporate Reorganization) and Rent-A-Wreck of America, Inc. (Bundy American's parent) each filed Chapter 11 petitions on July 24, 2017 in the District of Delaware. Cases were dismissed on February 13, 2018. Priceless Rent-A-Car, LLC was not a debtor.
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Councilor, Buchanan & Mitchell, P.C.
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: No
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 57 / 100 rating
- 01MINORDeclining unit count (48 units, only 4.4% YoY growth) suggests market saturation or franchisee struggles in the car rental space
- 02MEDNo disclosed average net income despite $951.32k average revenue — lack of transparency on profitability is a major concern
- 03HIGHActive litigation history involving wrongful termination, reservation diversion (competitive harm), and contempt findings indicates operational/compliance issues with franchisor
- 04MINORWide investment range ($189.5k–$2.59M) suggests inconsistent unit economics and unclear scalability
- 05HIGHGoing Concern status is FALSE — while not a going concern issue, combined with slow growth and litigation, suggests systemic challenges
- 06MINORMonthly minimum royalty floor ($800–$2,400) may be burdensome for underperforming locations in a declining 4.4% growth environment
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Territory type | Radius or Passenger Service Area |
|---|---|
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 3 mi |
| Territory population | 80,000 |
| Online sales rights | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 20 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 90 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Maryland |
| Litigation count | 1 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
David Schwartz v. JJF Management Services, Inc., Rent-A-Wreck of America, Inc., and Bundy American, LLC. U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland. Dispute over wrongful franchise termination and exclusive territory rights. Multiple appeals and retrials. Final judgment in 2015 favored franchisor. Subsequent contempt finding in 2017 regarding reservation diversion.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 32 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 7 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and franchisor location
- POS system
- ASAP Computer System
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: ASAP Computer System
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
28 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Rent-A-Wreck · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Rent-A-Wreck franchise?
The total investment to open a Rent-A-Wreck franchise ranges from $190K – $2.6M, with an initial franchise fee of $30K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Rent-A-Wreck franchise owners earn?
Rent-A-Wreck does not disclose average franchise owner earnings in their FDD Item 19. Not all franchisors are required to make financial performance representations. We recommend asking existing franchisees directly about their financial experience.
What is Rent-A-Wreck's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Rent-A-Wreck has a charge-off rate of 3.8% across 29 loans, meaning 3.8% of franchise loans were charged off. Charge-off rates are one proxy for franchise risk, though they do not capture all closures. This data comes from FOIA-sourced SBA lending records.
How many Rent-A-Wreck franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Rent-A-Wreck has 48 total units in the United States, including 47 franchised units and 1 company-owned units. 2 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Rent-A-Wreck a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Rent-A-Wreck as a B-grade franchise with a risk score of 57 out of 100, based on our analysis of investment costs, revenue data, SBA loan performance, and growth trends. Our rating is based solely on publicly available FDD and government data; we recommend speaking with current franchisees before making any investment decision. This is not investment advice.
Data sourced from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) FOIA records. Not financial advice.
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Data extracted from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) loan disclosures (FOIA). This information is provided for research purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Verify all figures with the franchisor's current Franchise Disclosure Document before making any investment decision.