08-24-2007, 10:35 AM
quote:
I'm with Bob though. It is about tourist, not locals. I wonder if the rental car companies would allow the cars to be ferried from Oahu to Maui. Probably not due to insurance and liability over water.
Made a call to my consumer affairs person at a large worldwide rental company. They are not saying anything officially, but here's what they offered up:
There really wasn’t any restriction by the "rental company" for traveling inter-island. The restrictions were a matter of logistics and two laws.
First, there was no way to just move a car from island to island via public transportation carrier. It was hard to put a rental in the overhead bins of an airplane. However, the HSF is a ferry just like other ferries operating in the United States so rental companies seldom bar transportation on a ferry without other reasons.
Second, the only way to move a vehicle from island to island was by commercial freight. A renter did not have the legal authority to sign shipping papers on that vehicle. But again, the HSF is a transpiration ferry not a shipping company or freight carrier so no shipping papers, just a fare.
The third reason no longer applies. Prior to the HSF, Hawaii had a state law that required the vehicle lien-holder (bank, manufacture’s finance company, etc) to authorize each inter-island transfer of a vehicle. However, when the HSF was proposed, they said the HI State legislature immediately passed a law removing the need for lien-holder permission. Supposedly, that was at the request of the tourist industry and rental car agencies.
So, based on that, it appears the rental car industry is welcoming the HSF.
Edited by - Bob Orts on 08/24/2007 14:36:28