We’ve discussed car rental safety and applicable law on this blog before, but a new report caught our attention because it delves into a topic that isn’t often covered: the safety of car seats that are obtained from a car rental agency.
This issue is of particular importance for any parents that are going to be traveling with children any time soon. Although it is possible to bring one’s own car seat along for a trip, and this will indeed be the safest option for parents, sometimes logistics simply don’t work out and parents opt to get a unit from the rental company.
But anecdotal evidence from parents suggests that the state of car seat rental safety is scattershot at best. One father relates how his attempt to secure a car seat from Dollar Rent a Car forced him to choose between seats that were dirty, seats that were flimsy, or those that didn’t even have the right clips. He opted instead to buy a seat elsewhere.
At least they had car seats. Another parent explains how Avis was out of car seats despite her repeated calls beforehand to secure one for her child. She claims she was advised to go to Walmart to buy one, at which point she would be reimbursed. Rather than doing so (and exposing her child to an unrestrained car ride), she pressured the employees, who were able to eventually turn up a car seat.