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The Good News and Bad News for Rental Car Users

Kansas City drivers rent cars every day. Most consumers assume that the cars and other vehicles in the rental car fleet are safe. In many ways they are. But, there are exceptions. The problem lies in the fact that many rental car carriers offer only one car model in each class.

Most rental cars rate highly in when it comes to keeping passengers safe in head-on collisions. This is the good news. Many of the major national car rental companies have similar cars in their fleets. A recent study performed by USA Today of over 160 of the most popular rental car models found that a whopping 95 percent performed very well in front-end crash tests. This is good news. Head on collisions are the most common form of deadly car accidents.

The bad news is that many of these same models do very poorly in side impact crashes. In fact, the majority of vehicles common in rental car fleets performed poorly in side impact testing. Passengers in vehicles with good safety ratings for side impact crashes are 70 percent more likely to survive a crash than those who are in vehicles rated poor in tests.

Plenty of the common cars rented by consumers, like the New Beetle by Volkswagen, the PT Cruiser, two-door Jeep Wranglers, and others fall into this category of poorly rated side impact crash vehicles. Larger vehicles may prove safer, but budget conscious customers are less likely to pay more for the larger rentals.

Be sure to check whatever car you rent for the following before setting out:

1. Tires should be well inflated and in good condition.

2. Check for properly functioning lights, signals, and horns.

3. Ask for a fluid levels check.

4. Check the wiper blades. Are they new and in good condition? Insist of a change for worn or poorly functioning wipers.

5. Ask about safety features such as seat belts and airbags.

One company was the focus of an investigation by the Kansas City Star a few years back. The Star's investigation revealed that a company deliberately left a safety feature-side curtain airbags- off of a Chevrolet car model. The reason? Saving millions of dollars. The rental car company, Enterprise, noted that leaving the airbags off of the Impalas violated no laws. But, the expense may be counted in the injuries that could have been prevented.

If you have been injured as a result of a car accident in a rental car, the Kansas City personal injury lawyers at Kansas City Accident Injury Attorneys will speak to you in a free initial consultation. For more information call 888-348-2616. Download your free copy of the resource guide 10 Essential Steps You Must Take to Protect Your Injury Claim for helpful information.

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Auto & Vehicle Accidents

• Why are research and statistics that look at gender differences among drivers important? If I am hurt in an Independence, MO car accident, do the research and statistics matter?

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