U-Haul Company of Connecticut

DATE: TO: COMPANY: FROM: Nov. 29, 2011 Jordan Fenster TOTAL PAGES INCLUDING COVER: 1 E-MAIL: jfenster@nhregister.com

New Haven Register Pete Sciortino President, U-Haul Company of Connecticut

MESSAGE: Per your request for information regarding the letter sent by Senator Blumenthal. Senator Blumenthals recent letter to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood claims the rental truck industry is absent regulatory oversight. U-Haul respectfully disagrees with him on this notion. To wit, the safety of our industry is regulated by literally thousands of pages of robust statutes and any company in our industry can be put out of service for failing to comply with them. The letter cites recent reports of rental truck safety violations as reasons to open an inquiry into the rental truck industry. We find that such language is more inflammatory than substantive. Historically, drivers of rental trucks and trailers are less likely to be involved in accidents than drivers in traditional driving situations. This is attributable to several factors, most notably the simple but important fact that the drivers family and personal possessions are along for the ride - hence an added degree of caution and awareness. Despite inferences otherwise, U-Haul Companys record of both complying with the law and cooperating closely with local, regional, national and federal authorities is an excellent one. His letter also refers to a tragic accident at a recent college football game. We share in his grief over the injuries and loss of life that occurred in his home state. Equipment malfunction is merely one of several possible causes for accidents like this driver error, driver impairment, road hazards and distracted driving are just a few of the others. It is therefore curious why the Senator has chosen to focus on just one of these possibilities. Given that the New Haven Police Department has not concluded their investigation nor released any information about the truck involved, common sense would suggest that it is premature that anyone would see the event as a motivating factor to ask Secretary LaHood for an inquiry into the entire rental industry. In contrast, U-Haul Company is choosing to react to this event only after all the facts are known. U-Haul takes the maintenance of our fleet extremely seriously. Our systems and protocols utilize state-of-the-art technology, and they are specifically designed with safety and compliance with the law as our top priorities. The fact is that U-Haul has been serving the moving public for over 65 years and have served hundreds of millions of customers in that time. We earned this privilege by offering equipment that is wellmaintained and fit-for-intended-use. This commitment to safety will always remain U-Haul Companys top priority.

In closing, I would like to thank the New Haven Register for contacting us. We appreciate the opportunity to respond to your request for information.