Tourists to Goa now need to sign a police form before renting a vehicle

After the incident, the government mandated the installation of speed governors – devices that keep speeds under a set limit – for all rental vehicles. The Director of Transport had also issued a directive for the inspection of transport vehicles, particularly ‘rent-a-car’ vehicles, to ensure that the speed governors had been installed and are functional.

Superintendent of Police (Traffic) Rahul Gupta said a “worrisome trend” was observed while analysing data on road accidents in the state.

“It has been observed that rent-a-bike and rent-a-cab vehicles are twice as likely to be involved in accidents compared to other registered vehicles in Goa. This heightened risk is primarily attributed to the negligence of users, especially tourists and their lack of familiarity with roads, diversions and the topography of Goa,” he said.

“To instil a greater awareness of road safety regulations…, (rental) services will now require users to sign an undertaking. The purpose is to have a psychological impact on the user… When they are signing the undertaking, they will be aware of this issue and hopefully, it will have an impact in reducing accidents,” SP Gupta added.

According to the Goa Police’s Traffic Cell, 2,832 road accidents were reported in Goa in 2023, resulting in 276 deaths. In 2022, as many as 3,011 road accidents took place and 271 people were killed, while in 2021, the number of accidents was 2,849 and the number of deaths 226.

The undertaking to be signed by those who want to rent vehicles in Goa will have 10 road safety laws and the corresponding legal penalties for violations. It includes pledges such as “I will not drive the car under the influence of alcohol”, and “I will not use the mobile phone while driving the car…”

The document will also include the name and personal details of the person renting the vehicle, including their driving licence and Aadhaar number.

“Two copies of the undertaking must be signed, with one retained by the user and the other by the rental agency. A meticulous record of these signed copies will be maintained…,” the SP said, adding, “Additionally, (rental) agencies must verbally communicate the content of the undertaking to the users before providing the vehicle.”

He also said that traffic police officers would “obtain weekly reports to verify that rental agencies are consistently issuing and properly explaining the undertakings to the users”, and that officers would also conduct random inspections to monitor “adherence to these procedures”.