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Bill wants tighter rein on car rentals
Rep. Angel Demapan (R-Saipan) wants operators of car rental companies in the CNMI to be held liable to settle traffic violations committed by their customers.
There have been cases where a car rental customer, most likely a tourist, gets a traffic citation but often leaves the island without settling the citation.
This has become problematic for traffic enforcers and most of these citations go unresolved.
Demapan will introduce House Bill 19-53 on a House session on Friday.
“The increase in visitor arrivals has resulted in an increase in vehicle rental businesses and inventory. This bill seeks to ensure that any liability for traffic infractions will be settled accordingly. In the event, the operator of a rented vehicle leaves island without settling his traffic citation, the rental company will then be the liable party,” Demapan said.
Demapan added that he offers this bill “amid emerging public concerns about the safety of motorists and pedestrians on our roadways.”
“What this does is it encourages car rental companies to properly educate their customers about the rules of the road before the vehicle is released for rent. This is a safety issue for everyone who commutes on our roadways,” Demapan said.
The lawmaker said he consulted with the involved agencies, including the Department of Public Safety, Department of Corrections, and the Marianas Visitors Authority on the filing of the proposed bill.
“The feedback I received from them have been taken into account in this final version,” he said.
H.B 19-53 also proposes car rental companies to be stricter in requiring driver’s licenses from customers, as well as an English translation of a contract or agreement that the customer must sign, among others.
