Report Title:

Traffic Infractions; Rental Motor Vehicles

 

Description:

Requires that the owner of a rental motor vehicle, upon notice that the rental motor vehicle has been involved in a traffic incident resulting in a violation, provide the court with the name and address of the lessee within 45 days of the mailing of the notice to the lessor and registered driver of the vehicle.  Effective 7/1/2075.  (SD1)

 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

869

TWENTY-FIFTH LEGISLATURE, 2009

H.D. 1

STATE OF HAWAII

S.D. 1

 

 

 

 

 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

 

RELATING TO RENTAL MOTOR VEHICLES.

 

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 

     SECTION 1.  Upon notice that a rental motor vehicle has been involved in a traffic incident from which a violation results, the owner of the rental motor vehicle shall be responsible for the violation unless the owner provides a court of competent jurisdiction with the name and address of the lessee of the rental motor vehicle within forty-five days.

     The purpose of this Act is to clarify and extend the notice provision by: 

     (1)  Requiring the court to mail a copy of the summons or violation to the rental motor vehicle owner within a certain period of time; and

     (2)  Clarifying that the period of time within which the owner must provide the lessee's name and address to the court begins on the date of the mailing of the notice.

     SECTION 2.  Section 291D-3.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

     "[[]§291D-3.5[]]  U-drive vehicles; traffic infractions.  Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, except those pertaining to the care and maintenance of the vehicle, if the registered owner of record is the lessor of a rental or U-drive motor vehicle, as defined in section 286-2, pursuant to a written lease agreement, the lessee at the time of the issuance of the traffic infraction shall be responsible for [such] the summons or citation; provided that the lessor shall be responsible for [such] the summons or citation if the court mails a copy of the summons or citation to the lessor within sixty days of the issuance of the summons or citation and if the lessor does not provide the court having jurisdiction over the summons or citation the name and address of the lessee within [forty-five] sixty days after [a] the mailing of the notice to the lessor containing the date, time, and location of the violation and the license number of the vehicle; provided further that if requested by the lessor in writing within [forty-five] sixty days of [such] the mailing of the notice of violation other than for parking citations, the administrative judge of the court having jurisdiction over the citation or summons shall waive the requirement of providing the name and address of the lessee by the lessor and impose an administrative fee of $5 per citation on the lessor, plus costs and fees not to exceed $10 in total per violation, notwithstanding section 607-4 or other [sections of the] law, county ordinance, or [any] rule to the contrary.  In the case of parking citations, the administrative judge of the court having jurisdiction over the citation or summons may waive the requirement of providing the name and address of the lessee by the lessor and impose an administrative fee of $5 per parking citation on the lessor, plus costs and fees not to exceed $10 in total per [such] violation, notwithstanding section 607-4 or other [sections of the] law, county ordinance, or [any] rule to the contrary."

     SECTION 3.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken.  New statutory material is underscored.

     SECTION 4.  This Act shall take effect July 1, 2075.