Saying car rental customers would be endangered if rental agencies were allowed to decide whether to take a safety-recalled vehicle out of service, U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer once again called for legislation that would prohibit the rental of cars that had been recalled for safety reasons, according to Reuters.
At the 2011 Car Rental Show, the American Car Rental Association (ACRA) proposed a two-tiered system that would categorize each recall by the nature of the defect and the potential for harm. Schumer rejected the ACRA proposal. Legislation Schumer introduced in March would require car rental companies to operate under the same restrictions as automobile dealerships, which are banned from selling any recalled vehicle until the safety issue is addressed.
Schumer said ACRA's proposal would allow each rental car company to set its own policy, which would lead to unsafe cars being rented out.
The ACRA proposal, however, would require the owner or lessee of any vehicle (commercial use or private) to immediately cease operation of the vehicle when the manufacturer and/or NHTSA believe continued operation of the vehicle pending completion of the recall remedy would pose a significant risk to public safety.