Organization, Description of Business and Consolidation

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

Organization, Description of Business and Consolidation

Organization, Description of Business and Consolidation

United Rentals, Inc. ("Holdings") is principally a holding company and conducts its operations primarily through its wholly owned subsidiary, United Rentals (North America), Inc. (“URNA”), and subsidiaries of URNA. Holdings’ primary asset is its sole ownership of all issued and outstanding shares of common stock of URNA. URNA’s various credit agreements and debt instruments place restrictions on its ability to transfer funds to its stockholder. As used in this report, the terms the “Company,” “United Rentals,” “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to United Rentals, Inc. and its subsidiaries, unless otherwise indicated.

We rent equipment to a diverse customer base that includes construction and industrial companies, manufacturers, utilities, municipalities, homeowners and others in the United States, Canada and Europe. With the July 2018 acquisition of BakerCorp International Holdings, Inc. (“BakerCorp”), which added 11 European locations in France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands to our branch network, we entered into select European markets. In addition to renting equipment, we sell new and used rental equipment, as well as related contractor supplies, parts and service.

The accompanying consolidated financial statements include our accounts and those of our controlled subsidiary companies. All significant intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated. We consolidate variable interest entities if we are deemed the primary beneficiary of the entity.

COVID-19

The novel coronavirus (“COVID-19”) was first identified in people in late 2019. COVID-19 spread rapidly throughout the world and, in March 2020, the World Health Organization characterized COVID-19 as a pandemic. COVID-19 is a pandemic of respiratory disease spreading from person-to-person that poses a serious public health risk. It has significantly disrupted supply chains and businesses around the world. The extent and duration of the COVID-19 impact, on the operations and financial position of United Rentals, and on the global economy, is uncertain. See "Item 1. Business- Industry Overview and Economic Outlook" above for a discussion of market performance in 2020. The health and safety of our employees and customers remains our top priority, and we have also engaged in extensive contingency planning to manage the business impact of the pandemic.

Prior to mid-March 2020, our results were largely in line with expectations. We began to experience a decline in revenues in March 2020, when rental volume declined in response to shelter-in-place orders and other market restrictions. COVID-19 is discussed in more detail throughout “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.”