End of CSAT, University Semester Ends... Teenagers and People in Their 20s Are the Main Causes of Winter Rental Car Accidents

Winter Rental Car Accidents Over 4 Years Account for 32.6% of All Accidents... 10s and 20s Involved in 33.3% of These
Drunk Driving and Inexperienced Driver Accidents Surge... Issues with Lax Rental Car Usage System Including 'All-Age Rental Car' Service Operation

#Last January, a 24-year-old man identified as A was driving a rental car when he crashed into a steel pole of a roadside sign at the intersection near Namsun Park in Tanbang-dong, Seo-gu, Daejeon, resulting in his death. The vehicle caught fire due to the accident, killing A and his passenger B (22). Three other passengers in the back seat were injured and transported to the hospital. A and B were brothers, and it was investigated that they were traveling with acquaintances in the rental car at the time.

Over the past four years, winter rental car accidents have frequently occurred, especially among teenagers and people in their twenties. This is attributed to a surge in rental car demand among students who have finished the College Scholastic Ability Test and university students who have completed their semester, leading to frequent accidents caused by inexperienced driving. There are calls for rental car companies to strengthen rental criteria compared to before to prevent accidents.

Photo by Asia Economy DB

According to the Road Traffic Authority on the 15th, from 2019 to 2022, there were 13,126 rental car-related traffic accidents during the winter seasons (January-February and November-December), accounting for 32.6% of the total 40,206 accidents.

In particular, winter rental car accidents occurred mainly among drivers in their teens and twenties, whose usage increases after the College Scholastic Ability Test or during school vacations. During this period, rental car accidents caused by drivers in their teens and twenties during winter totaled 4,366 cases (33.3%). This number is comparable to the 4,774 accidents that occurred during the peak seasons of summer (July-September) and May, when spring travel demand is high. Among the 114 deaths caused by rental car accidents during the same period, 31.6% (36 people) were in their teens and twenties.

Drunk driving accidents involving rental cars were also concentrated among teenagers and people in their twenties. Over four years, there were 1,440 drunk driving rental car accidents during winter, with 30% (436 cases) committed by drivers in their teens and twenties.

The sharp increase in accidents among young drivers is attributed to a lax rental car usage system. Rental car companies allow drivers with less than two years of driving experience to rent vehicles, leading to a surge in accidents caused by inexperienced drivers.

Currently, most companies set rental conditions requiring renters to be at least 21 years old and have more than one year of driving experience for safety reasons. However, some companies waive these conditions if renters complete about three hours of their exclusive driving education program, allowing those with less than one year of license acquisition to rent cars.

Some companies even operate so-called 'all-age rental car' services that rent cars regardless of age. These companies rent vehicles unconditionally to anyone holding a license, regardless of age or driving experience. They advertise with phrases such as "Anyone 18 or older or with less than one year of license acquisition can rent."

There are voices calling for the rental car industry to establish measures to reduce accidents among young drivers. Professor Choi Jaewon of the Road Traffic Authority said, "Drivers who cause rental car accidents are mostly beginners with less than two years of experience," and added, "Rental car companies should require customers to take at least 10 minutes of mobile education on traffic regulations when renting a car."