Committee hears split testimony on bill clarifying "loss of use" for rental and peer‑to‑peer vehicles

The Senate Executive Committee heard competing views June 30 on House Bill 382, a technical amendment meant to clarify when "loss of use" damages may be recovered in cases involving rental and peer‑to‑peer vehicle sharing.

Senator Hoffner introduced HB 382 with House Amendment 2, saying the bill corrects ambiguous statutory language and "preserves the ability to recover damages in situations involving intentional, willful, and criminal conduct," which she described as aligning the law with the General Assembly's original intent.

Supporters from the vehicle industry told the committee the measure is a narrow correction. "We fully support House Bill 382 as amended by HA2," Lincoln Willis of Avis Budget Group said, arguing the language "fixes some legal ambiguities" and restores a limited common‑law practice for loss‑of‑use recovery. Matt Kropinski of Enterprise Mobility echoed that position.

Insurance representatives urged caution. Chris DiPietro, speaking for Allstate Insurance and Toro, said the General Assembly previously restricted loss‑of‑use fees as "junk fees" and that HB 382 "creates a new area where loss of use could be charged for intentional, willful, and criminal conduct." DiPietro warned the bill provides no parameters for when a rental company may determine conduct to be intentional and noted that criminal liability is typically established only after adjudication.

A staff member reported there were no virtual public commenters. A committee member asked staff to follow up after the hearing to clarify who makes final determinations of intent under the bill.

No motion on HB 382 was taken during the session.

The committee moved on to other agenda items; the record for HB 382 includes in‑person testimony from Lincoln Willis (Avis Budget Group), Matt Kropinski (Enterprise Mobility), and Chris DiPietro (Allstate/Toro).