Lindstrom

A foreign citizen with a valid driver’s license from his country rents a car from a rental agency in California. Shortly thereafter he is involved in an accident in which plaintiff is injured.

The car agency is not liable to plaintiff for negligent entrustment. Its duty of care is limited to determining whether the lessee has a valid driver’s license as required by Vehicle Code section 14608. It has no duty to determine the lessee’s familiarity with California’s traffic rules.

We affirm the judgment of the trial court granting summary adjudication to The Hertz Corporation (Hertz).

Facts

Appellant Barbara Lindstrom sustained head injuries when she was thrown from the back of a motorcycle which collided with a rented car driven by Matthew France.

France is from England. Hertz, through its LAX (Los Angeles International Airport) office, rented France a car after he displayed a valid British driver’s license and the rental agent verified his signature.

Approximately a week after he rented the car, France was driving northbound on U.S. Highway 1 near Santa Barbara. He slowed his car to make a U-turn, at a point where Highway 1 is a two-lane road divided by a raised…