In 2004, a fatal car accident occurred when a recalled PT Cruiser that was offered by Enterprise Rent-A-Car spewed power-steering fluid and caught fire. A 24-year-old woman and her 20-year-old sister died in the crash, and their mother won a civil suit that awarded the family roughly $15 million.

That car accident and resulting lawsuit - along with growing concerns over the lack of regulation for agencies who offer recalled vehicles - has prompted reform in the rental car industry. Recently, Hertz entered an agreement with Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety that will see the company's processes for dealing with recalled vehicles regulated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

It is a movement that is echoed by lawmakers in Congress, who will hear a bill with similar regulations later this month. The bill will also prevent rental car companies from offering recalled vehicles to customers before they are fixed.

NHTSA currently has no oversight capability with rental car companies, though they do regulate vehicle manufacturers and ensure that safety recalls on their vehicles are properly handled. Another alarming note comes from the president of CARS, who says that rental cars are not necessarily armed with the same safety equipment as cars that are bought by a consumer off the lot.

Instead, rental car companies can purchase vehicles without optional safety equipment - just so long as the automobiles meet federal standards. Such a maneuver may have disabled a California woman in 2003, who suffered serious spinal cord damage after her SUV rolled over. The vehicle, which she rented, did not have a stability-control system that was optional on the vehicle.

Ultimately, this story highlights how a product's liability, and subsequent handling, can intersect with personal injury lawsuits. Car accidents that result from rental agencies negligently allowing faulty vehicles out on the road are very unfortunate, and those affected in such wrecks could pursue legal action.

Source: USA Today, "Safety advocates: Rental car recalls should be regulated," Gary Stoller, Feb. 21, 2012