The peer-to-peer legislation for motor vehicle sharing, House Bill 2384 in the state of Washington, passed the House at 73-23 on Feb. 10 with two excused and is currently in the Senate Rules Committee as it was passed on Feb. 22 for the bill’s second Senate reading.

The latest revisions on the bill include one last agreement with insurance groups to gain their support. This last agreement addresses liability issues, in terms of consumer disclosures. According to the latest bill digest:

“A program must provide a vehicle's registered owner and any person operating the vehicle in a program with a notice that discloses:

• the legal requirements for a program;
• the coverage and coverage limits provided under the program's insurance policy;
• that the vehicle owner's insurer has no duty to defend or indemnify for any loss that occurs during use of the vehicle under the program; and
• that the vehicle owner or a person operating the vehicle under the program may have liability for claims that exceed the limits of the program insurance policy.”

There in support for the legislation at the Feb. 21 Senate Financial Institutions, Housing and Insurance Committee hearing was Getaround Vice President John Atcheson, who was also there on behalf of RelayRides. Atcheson said that the average active Getaround user makes about $200 per month through the vehicle-sharing program. He added that by these calculations, there is $1.5 billion in revenue that consumers nationwide could be generating —$33 billion of which would be from the state of Washington. 

Also at the hearing in support were the Transportation Choices Coalition, Sightline Institute and the Washington Policy Center.

For a video of the hearing, click on the URL (discussion starts at about 1:05:00): http://www.tvw.org/index.php?option=com_tvwplayer&eventID=2012020148

To view the revised bill as it currently stands click here. For links to similar bills in California and Oregon, read this article.