United Rentals to Donate $200,000 to Red Cross for Hurricane Harvey Relief

United Rentals has pledged a $200,000 donation to the American Red Cross to assist with disaster relief following the devastation caused by Hurricane Harvey.

Michael Roth

Aug. 30, 2017

A United Rentals generator providing backup power in Toronto.

United Rentals has pledged a $200,000 donation to the American Red Cross to assist with disaster relief following the devastation caused by Hurricane Harvey. Within the company, the employee-funded 501(c)(3) United Compassion Fund has already granted approximately $100,000 to colleagues in need, and is prepared for aid to increase as the waters subside.

Where possible, displaced employees are being given temporary housing, and volunteer efforts have been mobilized from among the 13,700 United Rentals employees in North America.

“Our hearts go out to the countless people in Texas and Louisiana who suffered personal harm, property damage and displacement, and to the families of the victims who lost their lives,” said Michael Kneeland, CEO of United Rentals. “These hard-hit communities are our communities as well, and we stand ready to help in every way that we can.”

United Rentals, which has a large presence in the Gulf States, is asking customers to call 800-UR-RENTS (800-877-3687) with any inquiries in the affected areas.

About the Author

Michael Roth

Editor

Michael Roth has covered the equipment rental industry full time for RER since 1989 and has served as the magazine’s editor in chief since 1994. He has nearly 30 years experience as a professional journalist. Roth has visited hundreds of rental centers and industry manufacturers, written hundreds of feature stories for RER and thousands of news stories for the magazine and its electronic newsletter RER Reports. Roth has interviewed leading executives for most of the industry’s largest rental companies and manufacturers as well as hundreds of smaller independent companies. He has visited with and reported on rental companies and manufacturers in Europe, Central America and Asia as well as Mexico, Canada and the United States. Roth was co-founder of RER Reports, the industry’s first weekly newsletter, which began as a fax newsletter in 1996, and later became an online newsletter. Roth has spoken at conventions sponsored by the American Rental Association, Associated Equipment Distributors, California Rental Association and other industry events and has spoken before industry groups in several countries. He lives and works in Los Angeles when he’s not traveling to cover industry events.