[blindlaw] Can the blind rent a vehicle

Mon Jul 24 11:33:28 CDT 2006

I just spoke to budget, and they informed me that their policy affects the
age of the renter, not the driver. The representative told me that because
the renter is the one who is taking the financial responsibility by renting
the car, if anything happens, they have to charge the renter, not the
driver.

Rod
----- Original Message -----
From: "Ford, Tim (DHS-OLS)" <TFord at dhs.ca.gov>
To: "NFBnet Blind Law Mailing List" <blindlaw at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Monday, July 24, 2006 11:57 AM
Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Can the blind rent a vehicle

> This is an issue upon which I believe reasonable minds could differ.
> You could have the vehicle rented under the name of the older person,
> the driver, and thus save the money with no hassle.  I appreciate that
> avoids the issue, but sometimes the practical solution is the best one.
>
> I became curious on this young driver surcharge, since I have never
> faced that, so I called my local Enterprise office.  They told me they
> charge $10.00 a day for any listed driver that is between the age of 21
> and 25.
>
> Each listed driver must qualify on their own, so it is not a factor of
> the age of the person renting the car.
>
> Under the Enterprise policy, charging you extra due to your age would
> not be consistent.
>
> Now perhaps they would say that the age of both the renter and all
> drivers is important, since the renter is the one taking over-all
> responsibility, and the renter could affect what happens to the vehicle,
> such as where it is taken, where it is left, etc.  The older driver you
> had may not care because they know that you are the one with the
> responsibility, and so they may treat the vehicle differently than if
> they were the one on the hook.
>
> So I can see the point of charging a younger renter a surcharge.
> Frankly, I am surprised they would rent to you at all, so perhaps in
> this situation you are getting a benefit that a sighted person would
> not.
>
> However, I suspect that if you talk with a regional or headquarters
> office, on the special rules for a blind person being the renter, they
> may agree that you should not be charged extra.
>
> So again, I can see this being supportable both ways.  I certainly do
> not see it as a clear cut case of discrimination.  Enterprise would be
> charging an extra ten bucks a day for the under age person.  If other
> companies are similar, this is not a bad tradeoff.
>
> Sincerely,
> Tim Ford
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org]
> On Behalf Of McCarthy, Jim
> Sent: Monday, July 24, 2006 8:28 AM
> To: NFBnet Blind Law Mailing List
> Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Can the blind rent a vehicle
>
>
> Is it ok for you to pay this fee if you provide a younger driver?
> Sometimes I have talked them out of that saying I am vouching for the
> person and sometimes I could not.  I really do not know the equitable
> answer. Jim
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org]On
> Behalf Of Rod Alcidonis
> Sent: Monday, July 24, 2006 11:10 AM
> To: NFBnet Blind Law Mailing List
> Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Can the blind rent a vehicle
>
>
> Jim, I tried to make a reservation, and I encountered the same
> difficulty. In my case, as the renter, I am 24, and they insisted on
> imposing a young drivers fee even though my driver is over the required
> age of 25. Since I won't be doing any driving, it is ridiculous for me
> to be paying such fee!
>
> Rod
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "McCarthy, Jim" <JMcCarthy at nfb.org>
> To: "NFBnet Blind Law Mailing List" <blindlaw at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Monday, July 24, 2006 10:59 AM
> Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Can the blind rent a vehicle
>
>
> > There are a couple of settlements that the NFB was involved in during
> > the
> early to middles 1990's that require the process to occur as Tim
> describes. I believe that the DOJ worked on these and they have
> basically made their way through the community of rental agencies.  One
> of the issues that I think remains unsettled is whether the driver can
> be someone less than 25 years of age.  Many rental car companies assess
> substantial fees on drivers less than 25 years of age.  Is it right to
> assess the fee if I (just turned
> 40) provide as my driver someone who is 22.
> > Jim McCarthy
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org
> > [mailto:blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org]On
> > Behalf Of Ford, Tim (DHS-OLS)
> > Sent: Monday, July 24, 2006 10:34 AM
> > To: NFBnet Blind Law Mailing List
> > Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Can the blind rent a vehicle
> >
> >
> > I have rented a vehicle on a number of occasions, but I do not know if
>
> > this is legally mandated.
> >
> > On a few of those occasions, the folks at the local office of the
> > rental car company had to find out from their headquarters office that
>
> > it was okay to rent to me.  IN the past few years, I have not had any
> > such trouble, so the rental car firms appear to have all communicated
> > to their local offices how to deal with the situation.
> >
> > So it now seems accepted that the rental car can be secured in the
> > name of the blind person, and the only additional requirement is that
> > you present to them the driver.  The company will make a copy of the
> > drivers license of the driver, and that is about it.
> >
> > My recommendation is that you call ahead to the office you are
> > intending to go to, explain that you are blind, and will be bringing
> > the driver with you at the time of check-in.  Be sure and state that
> > you are going to be the one renting the car, and it will be rented
> > using your credit card.  Otherwise, you may end up with a surprise
> > when you get to the counter, when they try and have the driver rent
> > the car on their credit card.
> >
> > So calling ahead will allow the company to check with their regional
> > or headquarters office if they are unsure.  Get the name of who you
> > spoke with, in case that person is not there when you show up.  It is
> > also a good idea to ask in advance who you should check in with when
> > you physically get to the rental car office, being sure to include
> > with your question whether that person will be there at the time you
> > are planning to come in.
> >
> > Again, the few times I had this problem were all over 10 years ago,
> > and not since.  I rent a car under my own name at least once a year.
> >
> >
> > Sincerely,
> > Tim Ford
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org]
> > On Behalf Of Rod Alcidonis
> > Sent: Monday, July 24, 2006 4:37 AM
> > To: NFBnet Blind Law Mailing List
> > Subject: [blindlaw] Can the blind rent a vehicle
> >
> >
> > Hello everybody:
> >
> >    Can someone please comment on the legal requirements for a blind
> > person to rent a vehicle, besides having a driver available? Thanks.
> >
> > Rod
> >
> >
> >
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