Question:

We have a business of car rentals.  We have vans which we lease out to different customers.  Some vans are booked multiple times on the same day for different periods . Is it permissible to have different hire agreements for our vans? 

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.

The Answer:

It is permissible to have multiple contracts and hire agreements for a single van for different periods with different customers.
Such an agreement is binding on both parties and cannot be unilaterally revoked[1].

The Fiqh (jurisprudence of the answer):

As opposed to sales, rental agreements can be agreed to in advance for execution on a future date. The principle difference is based on the nature of the transaction; Ijarah contracts are Tamlīk of manfa’ah (usufruct), whereas, sale contracts are Tamlīk of ‘ayn (tangible asset). Imam al-Zayla’ī rahimahullah highlights the difference by stating that manfa’ah is not in existence at present, hence, the Tamlīk of it by default is suspended and forwarded until usage of an item begins[2].  

And Allah Ta’ālā Alone Knows Best
Mufti Faraz Adam,
www.darulfiqh.com

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