The National Business Federation for Vehicle Rental with and without Drivers (Feneval) has slammed the draft bill presented by the Council of Mallorca to limit the entry of vehicles and has warned of the economic damage it will cause. The proposal follows the path taken by Formentera and Ibiza in limiting vehicle traffic on the island and proposes fines of up to £30,000 for offenders.
In a statement, the association pointed out that one of the problems with the regulation is the lack of ‘real information’ on how many vehicles there are on the island. In the opinion of business owners, as was the case in Ibiza, the traffic study made estimates that, after the application process, proved to be incorrect. Feneval has requested that real data on the number of vehicles on the road be collected first, so that realistic measures can then be taken.
The restrictions contained in the draft will focus on vehicles not registered in Mallorca and are expected to come into force at the beginning of summer 2026. The restrictions will also affect the car rental sector. According to Feneval’s executive president, Juan Luis Barahona, the regulations ‘will affect freedom of movement in Spain, also harming the economic interests of companies’, and therefore ‘the public administrations must assume their financial responsibility for the economic consequences that this decision may entail’.
The measure seeks to limit vehicle ownership and will establish a tax for vehicles that are not taxed in the Balearics and apply an annual or biennial quota with preference for less polluting vehicles, an issue that, in Barahona’s opinion, clashes with car rental fleets.
‘The average age of rental cars is 2.2 years, compared to the rest of the market, which stands at 14.5 years, to which must be added that 50% of our vehicles are considered eco-friendly,’ said Barahona.
Feneval also pointed out that the regulations will also affect people who, although they own a property in Mallorca, do not reside on the island, because in order to be allowed to drive they will have to have a vehicle registered for tax purposes on the island and, in addition, they will only be allowed to have one car per property.
The association has urged that the entire mobility system on the island be adapted before reducing the number of rental vehicles. ‘Reducing the number of rental vehicles has no impact on the tourist saturation that the Council says it is seeking to reduce,’ they concluded.