Off-hire notices: agree when the hire really ends
On open-ended or long hires, the customer tells you when they've finished with the gear. If you haven't agreed how that works, you can end up arguing about which day the charges stopped.
Six steps for off-hire
- Say how notice is given: Phone, email, text or a form, and to whom. Written notice by email or text leaves a record of when it was given.
- Say when charges stop: When notice is received, when the gear is ready for collection, or when it's back at your yard. Pick one and write it down.
- Set a cut-off time: For example, notice before a set time counts for that day and after it counts for the next. Whatever your rule, put it in your terms.
- Confirm with a reference: Reply with an off-hire reference and the date and time you recorded. Both sides then have the same record.
- Agree the collection conditions: Where the gear will be, that it's accessible, and who is responsible for it until you collect it.
- Check it in when it's back: Record the return date, condition, hours and fuel, and compare them with the handover record.
How Signd helps at the end of a hire
- Put your off-hire rules in your terms, so every agreement carries them and the customer signs before the hire starts. Free.
- Term summaries ask customers to tick the key points, like how to give notice, before they can sign.
- Bookings keep the dates, the customer and the invoice together, and the calendar shows what's due back. (Signd Pro)
- A return inspection records condition, readings and photos when the gear comes back. (Signd Pro)
Common questions
Is there a standard off-hire rule?
Businesses do it differently. What matters is that your rule is written in your terms and the customer agreed to it before the hire started.
More guides
General information for hire businesses, not legal advice. Check your agreement and charges with your own adviser.