Car Rental Companies Agree to Pull Recalled Cars From Service
This year kicked off a campaign by rental car companies to prohibit the rental of recalled vehicles, hoping to create a standard amongst all the car rental firms. All the major car rental companies have now agreed to back Senate legislation to pull vehicles from the road if they’re recalled for safety defects.
The campaign kicked off when two women were tragically killed in a 2004 accident while driving a rental vehicle that had a safety recall on it that had gone unfixed. The bill is named after those two women, the Raechel and Jacqueline Houck Safe Rental Car Act of 2012, is also backed by the American Car Rental Association, the Truck Renting and Leasing Association, and AAA.
The act would bar the rental or sale of vehicles subject to a safety recall and will require car rental companies to ground vehicles under a recall. It also grants the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) the right to investigate and police rental companies’ recall safety practices.
As scary as it sounds, some major car rental companies would only pull their vehicles if it was recommended by the manufacturer. Others, such as Avis, has never rented a vehicle under a safety recall, so the law doesn’t change its business practices.
Regardless, it’s a much needed one that will undoubtedly give everyone a peace of mind when renting a vehicle.
[Source: Automotive News]
Jason Siu began his career in automotive journalism in 2003 with Modified Magazine, a property previously held by VerticalScope. As the West Coast Editor, he played a pivotal role while also extending his expertise to Modified Luxury & Exotics and Modified Mustangs. Beyond his editorial work, Jason authored two notable Cartech books. His tenure at AutoGuide.com saw him immersed in the daily news cycle, yet his passion for hands-on evaluation led him to focus on testing and product reviews, offering well-rounded recommendations to AutoGuide readers. Currently, as the Content Director for VerticalScope, Jason spearheads the content strategy for an array of online publications, a role that has him at the helm of ensuring quality and consistency across the board.
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