Consumers for
Auto
Reliability and
Safety

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Senator Boxer challenges rental car co's: take safety pledge
abandoned auto sales lot
Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) champions rental car safety
California’s U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer has issued a challenge to the 4 major rental car companies to pledge not to rent or sell vehicles that are being recalled due to safety defects.

Hertz immediately responded and took the pledge. But its competitors — Enterprise-National-Alamo, Avis-Budget, and Dollar-Thrifty so far have failed to take the pledge. Hertz is the #2 rental car company in the nation, in terms of its share of the rental car market.

Earlier this year, CARS announced that we reached a historic agreement with Hertz, which split from its competitors and agreed to support federal legislation, named for Raechel and Jacqueline Houck, two sisters, ages 24 and 20, who were killed by an Enterprise rental car that was under a safety recall.

abandoned auto sales lot
Enterprise rental car that killed Raechel and Jacquie Houck
Enterprise received the recall notice from Chrysler about 30 days before renting the killer car to Raechel and Jacquie, but didn’t bother taking it to a dealership to get it fixed, before renting it to them.

Instead of taking the pledge, Enterprise, Avis, and Dollar complained they are being treated unfairly, since individual consumers are not required to ground recalled cars until they are fixed. They just don’t get it — no one should have to worry about a rental car company deliberately renting them an unsafe car.

Sen. Boxer’s safety pledge simply says:

“Effective immediately, our company is making a permanent commitment to not rent out or sell any vehicles under safety recall until the defect has been remedied.”

Enterprise told the St.Louis Post-Dispatch that it insists on being able to pick and choose whether to ground recalled cars, or not. A spokesperson for Enterprise raised the example of a car with a seat belt chime that doesn’t work, as the type of defect Enterprise thinks is safe enough to keep renting to consumers.

However, according to Robert Vinetz, MD, FAAP, of Los Angeles, a leading pediatrician who is well-known for his work to improve safety for infants and children, such a defect endangers kids. Many parents rely on the chimes to alert them if a child is not buckled up, or if their buckle has become unfastened. Without the warning chime, a parent may not realize their child is unsecured — with disastrous results.

Instead of being an example of why rental car companies should be allowed to second-guess auto manufacturers and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Enterprise’s example is a classic argument for why they should be required to ground recalled cars until they are fixed. Period.
 
Read more: St Louis Post-Dispatch report:

Senator Boxer challenges:
Hertz
Enterprise-National-Alamo
Avis-Budget
Dollar-Thrifty
 
Would you "Like" Enterprise and other companies to stop renting unsafe vehicles?
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Enterprise Rental Car Co. plays "rental car roulette"
abandoned auto sales lot
Enterprise rental car that killed Raechel and Jacquie Houck
~ Endangers customers' lives
 
~ Refuses to support law to prohibit renting vehicles under a safety recall
 
Making headlines nationwide, rental car giant Hertz has reached a historic agreement with Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety, to support the newly revised Raechel and Jacqueline Houck Rental Car Safety Act, named for two sisters, ages 24 and 20, who were killed in a tragic crash in an unsafe Enterprise rental car. The Act would ban rental car companies from renting or selling vehicles that are being recalled, until they are fixed.

In a front-page report in USA Today, Hertz announced its support for the Act. If it is enacted, it will protect the public from defective rental cars so unsafe they are being recalled by the manufacturer. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the safety agency:
"... believes that rental car companies have a responsibility to provide safe vehicles to their customers. All safety recalls resulting from defects present an unreasonable risk to safety and we believe it is inappropriate to suggest that some defects are not risky enough to require repair. For the safety of the motoring public, all recalled vehicles should be fixed promptly."
 
However, Hertz' biggest competitor, Enterprise Rental Car Co, owned by the wealthiest car guy in the country, continues to be the biggest barrier to enacting the Raechel and Jacqueline Houck Safe Rental Car Act.

In letters submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration last April, major rental car companies admitted to federal regulators that they keep renting vehicles to the public, even when they know they are so unsafe they are being recalled by the manufacturer due to safety defects.
For example, Enterprise Rental Car Co. wrote that:
"A committee of senior executives of the parent company, including the executives responsible for vehicle maintenance and repair, evaluates recall notices. If the committee is confident that we can continue to safely rent the vehicle, we may rent the vehicle prior to the recall work being completed."
 
The letters from the rental car companies were submitted to the federal safety agency, in response to a formal Audit Query. The trade association for the rental car companies also stated, in a letter to members of the U.S. Senate, that after their member companies get recall notices, within the next 30-60 days, they usually fix only about 80 - 90% of the unsafe vehicles. Meanwhile, thanks to a loophole in the law, they may continue to rent or sell them to unsuspecting customers.

Obviously, 30-60 days is too long, and 80-90% is not enough. In one tragic case, two sisters, Raechel and Jacqueline Houck, ages 24 and 20, were killed by an unsafe Enterprise rental car about 30 days after Enterprise received the safety recall notice from the manufacturer. Meanwhile, Enterprise rented the defective vehicle to 3 other people. Any of them could have been killed. The car, a Chrysler PT Cruiser, was being recalled because it had a defect in a steering component that would cause an under-hood fire and also a loss of steering control. Raechel and Jacquie were riding in the car when the defect occurred. Witnesses saw the vehicle on fire. The sisters ended up colliding with an 18-wheeler, and the PT Cruiser exploded into flames. Their mother, Cally Houck, and brother, Greg Houck, have become ardent advocates for changing the law so other families will be spared the same horrific loss.

Eventually, after more than 5 years of denying it had any liability, and trying to blame the crash on the young women, Enterprise admitted it was 100% responsible for the deaths of Raechel and Jacquie -- about a week before the case was heard by a jury.
 
Read more: http://carconsumers.org/new.htm

 
USA Today: CARS and Hertz announce historic agreement on rental car safety.
What you don't know about rental cars can kill you.
 
Read the reports in USA Today:
www.usatoday.com/money/industries/travel/story/2012-02-20/Hertz-agrees-to-government-oversight-of-recalled-cars/53180734/1
www.usatoday.com/money/industries/travel/story/2012-02-20/Safety-advocates-Rental-car-recalls-should-be-regulated/53180374/1


Enterprise to customers: drop dead.
 
Read more:
www.cmn.com/2012/03/enterprise-wont-give-way-to-houck-act
 
 
Would you "Like" Enterprise and other companies to stop renting unsafe vehicles?
Show your support by "Liking" this on Facebook, by clicking the "Like" button below. Thanks!
 
 
Senator Boxer champions rental car safety law
Senator Rockefeller agrees rental car safety belongs in large auto safety bill
 
Citing the tragic crash that killed Raechel and Jacqueline Houck in an unsafe Enterprise rental car, U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) spoke passionately about the need to prohibit rental car companies from renting unsafe, recalled vehicles to the public. Sen. Boxer quoted a former Enterprise manager, who said in a court deposition: “When demand called, we rented out recalled vehicles. If all you have on the lot are recalled vehicles, you rent them out ... It was a given. The whole company did it. Enterprise’s corporate offices looked the other way regarding this fact.“

Sen. Boxer made this statement as a member of the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee, which voted to move forward with legislation to re-authorize the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. She pledged to work to ensure that the final bill presented on the Senate floor addresses the problem of unsafe rental cars.

Cally Houck, mother of Raechel and Jacqueline Houck, praised Sen. Boxer for her strong stand for improving rental car safety, noting that it was " very politically courageous."

The owner of Enterprise Rental Cars, Jack Taylor, is the richest car guy in the nation. For years, he has been listed among the top richest people in the nation, in the Forbes list of the richest people in the U.S.
 
Read more: http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/localnews/ci_19548639

See video of Sen. Boxer, speaking at Senate Commerce Committee hearing, Dec. 14, 2011:

Sen. Boxer on the CARS YouTube channel
 
 
abandoned auto sales lot
From the left: Cally and Greg Houck, mother and
brother of Raechel and Jacqueline Houck,who were
killed in an unsafe Enterprise Rental Car, and
Pamela Gilbert. Nov. 2011, outside the U.S. Capitol.
Photo taken by Ami Gadhia.
Senators champion rental car safety
U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) has introduced legislation, co-sponsored by Senators Boxer (D-CA), Feinstein (D-CA), Gillebrand (D-CA), and Blumenthal (D-CT) to prohibit rental car companies from renting or selling unsafe, recalled vehicles to the public. The bill is S 1445, and it is named The Raechel and Jacqueline Houck Safe Rental Car Act of 2011, in honor of Raechel and Jacqueline, who perished in the unsafe Enterprise rental car.
 
Read more: http://schumer.senate.gov/record.cfm?id=333680&
 
Would you "Like" Enterprise and other companies to stop renting unsafe vehicles?
Show your support by "Liking" this on Facebook, by clicking the "Like" button below. Thanks!
 
California Passes First-in-Nation Protections for Car Buyers
"This bill unleashes the power of technology to provide first in the nation consumer protections, cut red tape, and help save the state millions," said [California Assemblymember Robert] Blumenfield. "Buying a car, especially a used one, requires some detective work to determine its safety and value. By requiring junk cars and death traps to be flagged with a warning sticker, consumers can see these vehicles for what they really are when shopping for a car."

The bill implements a first in the nation requirement that car dealers post a red [warning} sticker on the used cars they sell that are flagged in a federally mandated database – the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System – as "junk," "salvage," or "flood" branded vehicles.

Read more: http://www.vannuysnewspress.com/news/2011/09/06/legislature-passes-first-in-nation-protections-for-car-buyers/

CARS spearheaded the successful effort to include the warning sticker provisions in the bill. Law enforcement agencies and officials joined in supporting the measure, after the pro-consumer changes were made. California Governor Jerry Brown has signed the bill into law. It is scheduled to kick in, beginning on July 1, 2012. Meanwhile, consumers can check the NMVTIS database directly, by
clicking on: http://www.vehiclehistory.gov.
 
 
Rental car companies try to kill legislation to stop them from renting or
selling unsafe cars
Enterprise, Hertz, Avis, and other rental car companies have joined forces to try to kill legislation now pending in Sacramento to prohibit them from renting or selling vehicles so unsafe they are being recalled by the manufacturer, under a federally mandated safety recall. The bill simply says, instead of endangering their customers' lives, they should fix them first. Seems like a no-brainer, right? But not when rental car companies are raking in billions in rental car fees from unsuspecting consumers.....
 
Read more: Unsafe Rental Cars
 
Would you "Like" Enterprise and other companies to stop renting unsafe vehicles?
Show your support by "Liking" this on Facebook, by clicking the "Like" button below. Thanks!
 
CA bill to protect public from vehicle theft, dangerous wrecked cars
Want to know if the car you're thinking of buying was so severely damaged, the insurance company decided to "total" it instead of paying for repairs? Want to avoid getting stuck with a flood car whose electronic systems are rapidly corroding, making it totally unreliable? Then we have good news for you --

California legislators will soon decide whether to enact a historic first-in-the-nation bill that has attracted enthusiastic support from consumer groups and law enforcement officials across the North American continent, as well as the California Highway Patrol. If it becomes law, it will require every new and used car dealer in the state to check the federal database of vehicles, established by the U.S. Department of Justice -- the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System -- before they offer the vehicle for sale. And -- this is the best part -- if it shows up with a branded title -- like "flood," "junk," "salvage," "non-repairable," or "lemon law buyback" -- OR if it was reported as a total loss or salvage, the dealer must post a warning sticker on the car.

Blumenfield testifies for AB 1215
Rep. Blumenfield testifies on behalf of AB 1215.
Supporters of the bill include:

Consumer Action
Read letter from Consumer Action

California Public Interest Research Group -- CALPIRG
Read letter from CALPIRG

Center for Auto Safety
Read letter from Center for Auto Safety

National Association of Consumer Advocates
Read letter from National Association of Consumer Advocates

The North American Export Committee -- law enforcement officials from U.S., Canada and Mexico -- urges passage of AB 1215, to help curb auto theft, salvage fraud, and related crimes
Read letter from the North American Export Committee (NAEC)

Veteran of FBI's Auto Theft Task Force
Read letter from Ryan Toole

Veteran of California Highway Patrol Auto Theft Investigations Unit
Read letter from Dennis Frias

National Salvage Vehicle Reporting Program (NSVRP)

 
Military seeks improved protections from unscrupulous auto dealers
abandoned auto sales lot
Cpl. William Woods served 2 tours in Iraq.
The U.S. Department of Defense, Secretary of the Army, and Secretary of the Air Force have identified predatory auto dealer lending as a threat to military readiness and national security. They were joined by Holly Petraeus, Head of the Better Business Bureau's Military Line, who helped raise public awareness of the serious financial problems faced by Servicemembers and their families, due to auto dealer scams.

For decades, the Federal Trade Commission has turned a deaf ear to pleas by military officials and individual members of the Armed Forces for help. At a hearing before the House Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, an FTC official even denied that auto lending is a problem for military personnel - - despite overwhelming evidence of the problems documented in official studies, data calls, testimony, memorandums, and news reports.
 
Read more: Letters from Military and news reports about sleazy auto dealers preying on Military Service members
 
Auto Dealers Tops in Consumer Complaints
Auto dealers are the least trusted businesses in the United States. Auto dealers are #1 most - complained-about businesses in the nation. American women "despise" car buying more than any other purchase.
 
Read more: Consumer complaints about auto dealers, sales top charts
 
abandoned auto sales lot
~ Rosemary Shahan presents Cpl. Woods with his new car.
CARS works to improve protections for military Servicemembers and their families
The military has identified financing by unscrupulous auto dealers as the #1 financial readiness problem encountered by troops and their families.

Report by KPIX-TV in San Francisco: Marine Veteran, after serving two terms in Iraq, is cheated by shady auto dealer near Camp Pendelton.
 
See more: Watch the video report at cbs5.com
 
Wall Street Reform
Dept. of Defense Seeks New Cop on the Beat to Protect Troops from Unscrupulous Auto Dealers.
Will Congress Protect Troops, or Sleazy Auto Dealers?
 
abandoned auto sales lot
~ Photo by Neil Michel, Axiom Photo Design, 2006.
Lt. Nathan Kindig (U.S. Navy, shown in enlarged photo), Capt. Patton (U.S. Navy), Rosemary Shahan (CARS President), Sergeant Major Wayne Bell (U.S. Marine Corps.), Ellen Turnage (Lt. Kindig's attorney), and California State Senator Liz Figueroa, speak to reporters at Capitol press conference, urging improved consumer protections for troops stationed in California from lemon vehicles, auto frauds, and predatory lending practices. Lt. Kindig spoke via phone, live from his duty station in Iraq, and described his ordeal over his lemon Chrysler truck.
 
 
 
Obama Administration, leading newspapers speak out for stronger consumer protections from auto dealers.
President Obama and his administration urged Congress to close the auto dealer loophole. Highly respected news organizations spoke out strongly in support of protecting consumers from unscrupulous auto dealers and their predatory lending practices.
Read more about why auto dealers should be regulated by the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
 
     
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Welcome to C.A.R.S.

C.A.R.S. Mission
CARS is a national, award-winning, non-profit auto safety and consumer advocacy organization working to save lives, prevent injuries,
and protect consumers from
auto-related fraud and abuse.
"CARS is one of the most consistently strong consumer groups... Consumers can thank
CARS for today's lemon laws, air bags and generally safer cars."
– Clarence Ditlow, Executive Director
Center for Auto Safety, Washington, DC

C.A.R.S. tips for car buyers
Want to avoid getting scammed when you buy a new or used car?  Check out CARS video

 
Buyer Beware! Auto dealers' one-
sided contracts can ruin your life
Even if the dealer breaks the law, you might not be able to get justice. Forced arbitration clauses hidden in the fine print can keep you tied up for years. The dealer even gets to pick the arbitrator who hears your case. Here's what happened to a car buyer in San Diego:
Think this is outrageous? Call your member of Congress at 202-224-3121, and urge them to vote for the Arbitration Fairness Act. More about the AFA, now pending before Congress:
http://www.fairarbitrationnow.org