Age Discrimination and the Equality Act

The Equality Act 2010 (‘the Act’) bans discrimination against adults, on the grounds of their age, in the provision of services, including vehicle rental services.

The ban on age discrimination comes into effect on 1 October 2012. From this date vehicle rental firms will only be able to restrict the services they offer, or impose different fees for their services, based on the customer’s age, if they can give a sufficient reason for their decision. In legal parlance this reason is called ‘objective justification’.

What is the impact on rental companies?

If a vehicle rental company wishes to restrict access to vehicles because of the age of the customer they will need to consider if they can objectively justify their decision if challenged. The BVRLA has worked closely with the Home Office to produce guidance which assists members on how they can objectively justify a policy with regards renting to younger or older drivers.

This guide gives practical advice to firms providing short-term vehicle rental to members of the public. Adoption of good practice can promote equal treatment and avoid unjustifiable discrimination towards customers because of their age. It contains data which can be used to justify a policy and frequently asked questions on what may be allowed under the legislatin.

To access the guide click here.

Signposting

A vehicle rental company that does not rent to members of a specific age group may wish to refer them to the BVRLA rental members: customer age policies page of the BVRLA’s website, which provides details of vehicle rental firms that will serve them. Signposting will not in itself satisfy the objective justification test, but will substantially reduce the risk of facing a legal challenge.