Editorial: Safe at any speed?

Wednesday, June 27, 2007 | 7:22 a.m.

U -Haul, the national leader in the do-it-yourself move industry, has increased the risk of accidents on the nation's roadways by ignoring safety standards and failing to properly maintain its equipment, according to a Los Angeles Times series that concluded Tuesday.

The yearlong investigation into the hundreds of accidents and the company's operations found:

The Times' detailed a series of crashes that resulted in death or serious injury, which U-Haul officials blame on driver error. The Times found that people who rented U-Haul trailers often did not receive safety information.

U-Haul officials seem to shrug off the danger they have created, absurdly saying that it is safer to drive with a trailer than without one.

The company operates with little regulation because of a successful fight it participated in 40 years ago to stop federal oversight. State laws that regulate trailer safety typically hold the driver responsible, even for faulty equipment on a rental trailer.

There should be federal oversight of companies such as U-Haul because bad maintenance and poor policies create a potentially fatal risk for everyone on the roadway.