Vehicle Disclosure Laws Enacted In California

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed a bill on August 21st that will require car rental companies to disclose the full amount of car hire, except taxes in advertising, including vehicle license fee, customer facility charges and any other mileage charges.

The new law, effective earlier this year, also states that if any charges are imposed, the car hire company must also provide the customer with an estimate of the taxes and fees involved.

The introduction of the bill also means that companies must “clearly and conspicuously” disclose the total rate inclusive of taxes and charges, and the increased vehicle license fee particularly at the time of rental.

The law also requires car hire companies to approximate the daily increased license recovery fee by prorating the increase based on annual fees paid by the preceding 12 months for each type of vehicle being rented.

Car hire firms must also reconcile the amount of increased vehicle fees paid by the company for each class of vehicle and the amount of vehicle recovery fees charged to its customers for rental of vehicles in those classes and to publish the information on their website.