May 2000: Hertz Portugal has signed a new agreement with the Order of Architects that will allow the association's 6,000 members to benefit from the Hertz Advantage Programme each time they rent a car.

Lower rates and special services on request are available in Hertz's 28 Portuguese rental locations, and in all the markets in which it operates across Western Europe, Asia and the Pacific, Latin America, Africa, USA and Canada, with 140 countries signing the protocol.

Hertz Portugal is owned by Hipolito Pires, a well-known local entrepreneur who also owns the SEAT, Daihatsu and Ssangyong brands in Portugal, as well as aviation company Heliavia aviation company and Hipogest real estate.

The car hire company has been operating in Portugal since the Sixties but suffered major difficulties in the last few years. In 1998, Pires bought it and in just one year returned it to profits. Hertz Portugal runs about 6,000 vehicles and expects to grow steadily.