Published: July 2015

Recalled vehicles should not be rented to consumers

Those who frequently drive rental cars should feel more secure behind the wheel. Senator Claire McCaskill introduced an amendment that will force rental companies to perform recalls on their vehicles before they can be driven by consumers. An earlier GOP proposal would have allowed unsafe, potentially dangerous vehicles to remain in service or sold as long as the customer was warned of the recall.

Sen. McCaskill’s (MO-D) Amendment 1 to the Comprehensive Transportation and Consumer Protection Act of 2015 (S. 1732), received the support of both consumer advocates and major car companies, including the American Car Rental Association, Honda and General Motors, Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety and Consumer Action. The original version of the bill, proposed by Sen. Thune and the Republicans, allowed cars to be rented with known safety defects as long as companies disclosed the open recalls to customers.

“When consumers and families drive a rental car off the lot, they should be able to do so with the confidence that car is safe to drive, and we’re one step closer to that peace of mind today,” McCaskill said.

The bill is named after Raechel and Jacqueline Houck, two sisters from Santa Cruz who were killed while driving a rented Chrysler PT Cruiser that had been recalled for a power steering hose defect but had not been repaired.

Lead Organization

Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety (CARS)

Other Organizations

Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety | Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety | Consumer Action | Consumer Federation of America | Consumers Union | International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers | National Association of Consumer Advocates | National Consumers League | Trauma Foundation | U.S. Public Interest Research Group

More Information

For more information, please visit CARS' website.

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Recalled vehicles should not be rented to consumers   (McCaskillamend1toThuneS1732.pdf)