New Law Requires Recalled Rental Cars to Be Fixed Before Being Rented
A new federal law now requires that rental car agencies fix recalled cars before they can be rented out.
A long time in the making, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced that the new law is effective June 1, 2016 and rental car agencies must fix any and all open safety defects before renting out vehicles to customers. Federal law now prohibits any company or dealer with fleets greater than 35 vehicles to rent unrepaired recalled vehicles and also extends NHTSA’s recall authority to cover rental car companies for the first time, giving the agency power to investigate and punish violators.
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The legislation was championed by the family of Raechel and Jacqueline Houck, sisters who died in a rental vehicle that was under a safety recall but had not been repaired. In recent years, there have been a record number of recalls on vehicles, especially now with the massive Takata airbag recall linked to over a dozen deaths.
“When a family picks up a rental car on vacation, they should be able to expect it is free of any known safety defect,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “I thank Congress and the safety advocates who helped turn this common-sense idea into law.”
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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