Monday, Dec 16, 2013 at 23:39
"Duty of care" is a
well-proven, legally-enforceable concept, that can be actioned in the courts, and there is no reason to think that this will change anytime in the future.
There is most certainly a duty of care upon a hire company to ensure that they are not letting a greenhorn go into a situation with their hire vehicle, whereby they will be in serious danger, because of a lack of knowledge of conditions the hirer could possibly encounter.
This means that the hirer is obliged to provide equipment suitable for the intended use, and that the hirer provides basic warnings about dangerous situations that a greenhorn would possibly not be aware of. This particularly applies to overseas visitors.
I have no experience of snow or extreme cold - but if I went to a country where such conditions exist and I hired equipment to travel into snow and extreme cold, I would expect equipment designed and fully capable for that use - and I would expect some relevant information and advice from the hire company, about what I would be likely to encounter, and what to be very aware of.
This concept is no different as in the case of setting someone up for a fall, by leaving items or equipment in such a dangerous position or condition, that any reasonable person would see that it was likely that someone who was unaware could be injured.
Leaving the upturned rake in the grass, or the ladder where someone can walk into it in the dark, is typical of this type of situation.
Once the hirer is made aware of the traps and dangers - then if they then wilfully choose to ignore the advice, and get into serious trouble - then I have no problem with the concept of "personal responsibility" in that situation.
This entire concept of making people aware, is no different to teaching your kids about common (and not-so-common) dangers - when you know they do not have the experience, maturity or knowledge to understand those dangers.
In fact, we often continue to teach our kids about many various traps and dangers, even into
young adulthood.
If a hire company spends some time getting the hirer fully familiar with the vehicle and the various tricks and traps, and basic bush sense - then they have discharged their duty of care, and the hirer has no comeback, once they have been informed.
I hired a large dual-wheel 6 berth motorhome from one of the leading campervan/motorhome hirers in July 2012, and both myself and my partner were given a 20 min informative video to watch on the operation of every facet of the motorhome - plus we were given a full rundown via another 20 min "walk-around" inspection and information tour of the motorhome, by a company employee - and we were also given a comprehensive folder full of much relevant information relating to driving, road conditions, potential dangers, and many other factors.
I was very pleased with this companys performance in that respect - and I expect it's in the companys interest to make sure that this is done, to try and ensure that their hire vehicles are looked after in a manner that gives them confidence the vehicle will come back in a readily-hire-able condition again.
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