File this one under “Really Hard to Believe…”

Senators Barbara Boxer of California and Charles Shumer of New York recently advised the Asssociated Press that 5 rental car companies[Enterprise; Hertz; Avis; Dollar Thrifty and National] have agreed to stop leasing cars under safety recalls. Currently, there is NO federal legislation that prohibits rental car companies from renting cars that are affected by safety recalls.

An announcement was scheduled for today in Washington. Expected to attend are relatives of Raechel and Jacqueline Houck, who died in 2004 when their rental car caught fire. The vehicle they had rented was under recall for a power steering defect but had not yet been repaired. They died after being involved in a head-on collision. The agreement is expected to help get legislation passed prohibiting the rental of cars affected by safety recalls.

AAA President Robert L. Darbelnet was quoted as saying the anticipated legislation is “…a common sense solution that would keep unsafe vehicles off the road.” Actually the common sense solution is NOT to rent the cars upon notification of any safety recall. Hard to believe a federal law was necessary before car rental agencies terminated this practice.