California Lemon Law Lawyer Blog

On April 28 the California Assembly approved the nation's first law to force rental car companies to pull vehicles off the road after a safety recall. The bill was introduced after two sisters were killed when the steering failed on a Chrysler PT Cruiser they had rented from Enterprise. The car hit a truck and caught fire.

Their mother, Carol Houck, of Ojai, testified in committee that the car had been rented at least three times after Enterprise received the recall notice. The Houck family filed a wrongful death lawsuit that Enterprise fought for five years. A jury last year awarded the family $15 million.

Rental car companies are lobbying against the bill for no good reason other than it might cost them some money. Rosemary Strahan of the Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety group sponsored the bill, AB 753.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Admnistration (NHTSA) has long refused to post the technical bulletins that auto manufacturers issue to their dealers. Some of the bulletins announce warranty extensions for certain repairs. Knowing a warranty extension would benefit affected car owners. With the information, they would know the manufacturer would pay for needed repairs.

Christopher Jensen of the NY Times reports the agency claims that copyright concerns prevent publication, but most manufacturers say they do not object to having their bulletins published. A Ford spokesman said Ford was afraid that if do-it-yourselfers obtain the bulletins, they would take it upon themselves to perform repairs for which they are not qualified thus ignoring the fact that the bulletins are available from publishers like Alldata.

Clarence Ditlow of the Center for Auto Safety said that this was a case of the agency was more concerned about catering to industry rather than helping consumers.