Hire terms

"We", "us", "our" and "Hire a Lift" mean National Tool Hire Ltd, trading as Hire a Lift, whose registered office is at 2B Stanley Grange, Knowsley, Prescot, Merseyside, L34 4AR.

"Customer" or "you" means the person, firm, company or other organisation hiring Hire Goods or buying Services.

"Consumer" means an individual acting for purposes wholly or mainly outside their trade, business, craft or profession.

"Contract" means the Contract Details, the Damage Waiver (unless removed under clause 5.3) and these terms.

"Contract Details" means the details of your hire set out in the email confirmation we send you.

"Hire Goods" means any machine, access platform, attachment or accessory hired to you.

"Hire Period" means the period starting when you hold the Hire Goods (including Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holidays) and ending when they are collected by, or returned into the possession of, us or our supplier partner.

"Rental Charges" means our charging rate for the Hire Goods during the Hire Period, as set out in the Contract Details.

"Additional Charges" means costs you may incur beyond the Charges, including any extra hire period, Re-delivery Fees, Re-collection Fees, fuel, damage, loss or theft, late extension and Cleaning Charges.

"Charges" means the amount payable for the Hire Goods and Services, excluding Additional Charges.

"Cleaning Charge" means £30 per hour or such other charge as we set acting reasonably.

"Deposit" means any advance payment we hold as security in relation to the Hire Goods.

"Damage Waiver" means the damage waiver included in every Hire a Lift price, under which we waive part of our right to recover the cost of accidental damage to the Hire Goods. It is a subrogation waiver, not an insurance product. Depending on the machine it is Standard, which covers the first £50 of the £1,700 hired-in plant claim excess, or Premium, which covers the first £200. Clause 16 sets out its terms.

"HiPI" means your own hired-in plant insurance.

"Services" means work we perform in connection with the hire, including delivery and collection and, for operated hire, the operator who works the machine.

"Re-delivery Fee" and "Re-collection Fee" mean a fee for a delivery or collection attempt after the first included attempt, covering travel, any extension to the Hire Period and any third-party costs caused by that further attempt.

"Force Majeure" means any event outside a party's reasonable control, including acts of God, war, flood, fire, labour disputes, strikes, riots, explosion, terrorism and governmental actions.

2.1 Hire Goods are hired subject to availability at the time you need them. We are not liable for any loss caused by Hire Goods being unavailable.

2.2 Where the hire is to an individual, unincorporated entity or a business of two or three partners and would be covered by the Consumer Credit Act 1974, the Hire Period shall not exceed 3 months, after which the Contract ends automatically. You must return the Hire Goods on the final day of that 3 month period.

2.3 Nothing in this Contract excludes or limits any statutory rights you have as a Consumer. If a provision marked with an asterisk (*) is found to have no effect against a Consumer, the Contract applies without it. For more about your rights, contact your local Trading Standards department or Citizens Advice.

2.4 The Hire Goods and Services are supplied and delivered by our supplier partners. Your contract is with us, so all communication about the Hire Goods and Services, including price and terms, should be with us.

3.1 Where you deal as a Consumer, we must supply Hire Goods and Services that conform to the Contract, and you have legal rights if they are faulty, damaged, not as described or not carried out with reasonable skill and care.

3.2 You must examine and test the Hire Goods on delivery and report any fault, defect or breakdown to us as soon as possible, and in any event within 2 hours of delivery, by email to hello@hirealift.co.uk or by phone on 0333 038 4946. Reports made to a supplier partner or any other third party are not accepted. Do not use faulty Hire Goods unless we authorise it in writing.

3.3 Failing to report a fault within 2 hours may affect your remedies under this Contract, subject to your statutory rights as a Consumer.

4.1 Charges, any Deposit and other sums are as set out in the Contract Details, or otherwise our current prices, and must be paid in advance of the hire in the manner agreed.

4.2 When you book, we authorise the total Charges (Rental Charges, any delivery and collection charges, the Damage Waiver, fuel, VAT and any deposit) against your card. We may accept a Deposit by another method, including bank transfer, instead.

4.3 During and after the Hire Period we calculate any Additional Charges and request them with a further card authorisation, or another method if that is not available. All Charges and Additional Charges must be paid by the end of the Hire Period or within the time we tell you.

4.4 Prices are shown inc and ex VAT. Where a price is stated ex VAT, VAT is payable in addition.

4.5 Payment is made only when we receive cleared funds for the full amount.

4.6* If you do not pay in full when due, we may charge interest at the rate under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 where it applies, or 4% above our bank's base rate, whichever is higher, and you are liable for our reasonable costs of recovery.

4.7* You must pay all sums due without set-off, deduction or counterclaim.

4.8 We may set a reasonable credit limit and suspend or end the hire if it would be exceeded.

4.9 Subject to clause 9, a cancelled order may incur a cancellation fee of up to the full order value. We may reduce the fee by up to 90% at our discretion.

4.10 For fuel-powered Hire Goods we may charge for fuel used, unless the Contract Details say fuel is included.

4.11 We return any Deposit, less permitted deductions, within 21 working days of collection unless we agree otherwise.

5.1 Risk in the Hire Goods passes to you when they leave the possession or control of our supplier partner, and does not pass back until they are back in that supplier partner's possession, even if Rental Charges have stopped.

5.2 Ownership of the Hire Goods stays with their owner. You have a right of possession only during the Hire Period, and must not sell, lend, sub-hire, charge or otherwise deal with them.

5.3 Optional damage waiver included. Hold your own HiPI? Upload your certificate to remove it. The Damage Waiver is on every hire and in every price unless you upload a HiPI certificate and we accept it. There is no other way to remove it. The Damage Waiver is charged as a percentage of the Rental Charges for the Hire Goods, and its level and cost are shown on the machine page and at checkout before you pay. The Damage Waiver covers only part of the claim excess for accidental damage, on the terms in clause 16.

5.4 Where we have accepted your HiPI certificate and removed the Damage Waiver, you must, at your own cost:

• keep the Hire Goods insured with a reputable insurer for their full replacement value against all risks of damage, theft and loss;
• show us the policy and proof of premium on request, and do nothing that could invalidate it;
• pay us the proceeds of any claim for the Hire Goods, holding them on trust for us until paid;
• not settle any claim about the Hire Goods without our written consent; and
• not use the Hire Goods anywhere other than the delivery location without our written agreement.

5.5 We may ask for a Deposit, which may be used towards repair or replacement if the Hire Goods are damaged.

5.6 Subject to the Damage Waiver, you will pay the cost of repairing Hire Goods returned damaged, unclean or defective (other than through fair wear and tear or an inherent fault), and Rental Charges until the repair or cleaning is complete.

5.7 If Hire Goods are lost, stolen or damaged beyond economic repair during the Hire Period you will pay their new replacement cost, less any insurance or Deposit received, and Rental Charges up to the date you tell us. From then until you pay for the replacement, you will pay two thirds of the Rental Charges as a genuine pre-estimate of lost rental profit.

6.1 Unless agreed otherwise, we deliver and collect the Hire Goods. Delivery and collection are either included in the hire price or priced for your postcode, as shown before you book. The Contract includes one delivery attempt and one collection attempt; further attempts are charged as a Re-delivery Fee or Re-collection Fee.

6.2 Before you are given access to the Hire Goods you must prove your identity to our satisfaction, which may include an online identity check. If you do not, we may refuse access and end the Contract with a reasonable charge.

6.3 We cannot guarantee that a hire starts or ends at a particular time of day. If you need a machine on site by a set time, start the hire the day before.

6.4 When you book you must tell us the exact site location and anything needed to deliver or collect: access restrictions (such as vehicle weight or height limits), key codes, intercoms, identification needed and known route problems. Delivery is kerbside only, never inside premises or up or down stairs.

6.5 If a delivery or collection cannot be completed because of undisclosed restrictions, or because nobody is present, the further attempt is charged as a Re-delivery Fee or Re-collection Fee in line with the value of the Hire Goods, for example around £25 for small items or around £500 for large machines needing specialist transport. These figures are illustrative only.

6.6 You must tell us of any change to the site details, or if nobody will be present, with at least 1 working day's notice, or we may charge an administration fee.

6.7 Unless agreed otherwise, we collect the Hire Goods within 5 working days of the end of the Hire Period. You remain responsible for loss, damage or theft until they are collected. If collection fails because of restricted access or your absence, we will rearrange it, charge a Re-collection Fee and may extend the Hire Period and its Rental Charges to the collection date.

6.8 For operated hire, once you instruct the operator they work under your direction and control. You are responsible for your instructions and any damage caused by the operator following them, except where the operator is found by a court to have been negligent.

6.9 You must provide safe access to and from the site, space to unload and set up, and a site that is cleared and prepared before the hire or Services start. If Services are delayed or cancelled because you have not done so, you are liable for our full Charges for that period, except where you are a Consumer and the delay is due to Force Majeure.

7.1 You shall:

• not remove labels from or interfere with the Hire Goods, and use them only for their proper purpose, safely and in line with the operating and safety instructions supplied;
• make sure anyone operating the Hire Goods is trained and qualified for them as the law requires, including holding the right IPAF PAL card for mobile elevating work platforms;
• tell us immediately of any breakdown, loss, damage or accident involving the Hire Goods, and stop using damaged Hire Goods;
• protect the Hire Goods from theft and damage and keep them in your possession and control at the delivery location;
• let us inspect the Hire Goods at reasonable times on reasonable notice;
• carry out any checks or inspections the law or the operating instructions require during the hire, unless we have agreed to provide them as part of the Services; and
• use the correct fuel. Red diesel must not be used in hired equipment, and misfuelling incurs a tank drainage and fuel disposal charge.

7.2 You must return the Hire Goods in good working order and clean, with all documents supplied. If they are not clean we may charge a Cleaning Charge, payable within 7 days of our invoice.

8.1 We may make an allowance against the Rental Charges for any time the Hire Goods cannot be used because of an inherent fault or fair wear and tear, if you tell us promptly and we cannot repair or replace them within a reasonable time. Allowances run from when we receive your report, and our liability for a breakdown is limited to your wasted Rental Charges for those Hire Goods.

8.2 Subject to the Damage Waiver, you are responsible for loss and damage caused by a breakdown due to your negligence or misuse.

8.3 You must not repair or attempt to repair the Hire Goods unless we authorise it in writing.

9.1 This clause applies only if you are a Consumer.

9.2 If you ask us in writing to start the Services within a statutory cancellation period, your right to cancel without charge ends once the Services are complete, and if you cancel after they have begun you are liable for costs reasonably incurred up to that point.

9.3 Where the Contract provides for a specific date or period of performance, as a hire booked for set dates does, you do not have a statutory right to cancel without charge. Clause 4.9 applies to cancellations.

9.4 To cancel a booking, email hello@hirealift.co.uk with your order reference.

10.1 If the Hire Period is fixed, neither of us may end the Contract early except under clause 11 or by agreement.

10.2 If the Hire Period is not fixed, either of us may end the Contract after it starts by giving at least 1 working day's notice. For example, notice given on Monday ends the Contract at midnight on Tuesday.

11.1 We may exercise the rights in clause 11.2 if you:

• fail to pay any sum when due;
• breach the Contract and do not put it right within 14 days of notice, or breach it persistently;
• give us incomplete, inaccurate or misleading information in connection with the Contract;
• become insolvent, enter liquidation, administration or a similar process, or stop trading; or
• appear to us, acting reasonably, to be unable to meet your obligations.

11.2 We may then, without prejudice to our other rights: recover the Hire Goods (entering your premises without notice, except where you are a Consumer); stop or withhold Services; end or suspend this and any other Contract with you; and require all sums owed to be paid immediately*.

11.3 When the Contract ends you must return the Hire Goods or make them available for collection, and pay all sums due, including the cost of recovery.

11.4 If you are a Consumer, you may end the Contract and receive a refund for anything not provided if we tell you of a change you do not agree to, or of an error in the price or description, if supply may be significantly delayed by events outside your control, if we suspend supply for more than 3 days, or if you have a legal right to end it because of our breach.

12.1 Implied warranties and conditions as to fitness, quality and adequacy are excluded to the fullest extent the law allows.

12.2 If we are liable for damage to your property, our liability is limited to replacing it like for like, of similar age and condition.

12.3 We are not liable for consequential, economic or indirect losses, business interruption, loss of profit, contracts, opportunity or goodwill, or for costs of hiring any tradesperson or contractor.

12.4 Our total liability under any Contract shall not exceed 2 times the Charges and Additional Charges you paid under it.

12.5 Nothing limits our liability for fraud, or for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, or anything else the law does not allow us to limit.

13.1 If we fail to comply with this Contract, we are responsible for loss or damage you suffer that is a foreseeable result of our breach or our failure to use reasonable care and skill, but not for loss that is not foreseeable.

13.2 We do not exclude or limit liability where it would be unlawful to do so, including for death or personal injury caused by negligence, for fraud, and for breach of your legal rights in relation to the Hire Goods and Services.

13.3 We supply to Consumers for domestic and private use only, and are not liable to you for business losses.

14.1 We comply with data protection law and use your personal information as set out in our privacy policy at hirealift.co.uk/legal/privacy.

14.2 Calls to 0333 038 4946 are answered by an AI voice assistant, which tells you so at the start of the call. You can ask for a person at any time. All calls are recorded for quality, training, dispute resolution and compliance. The assistant does not make decisions that significantly affect your order; people do.

14.3 Call recordings and transcripts are kept for 6 months, or 7 years if a support ticket or booking is created. To access or delete your recordings, or to opt out of anonymised call data being used to improve the assistant, email hello@hirealift.co.uk.

14.4 We are not liable for errors in the assistant's answers beyond correcting them and, where applicable, remedying any direct loss caused, subject to clauses 12 and 13.

15.1 Clauses intended to continue after the Contract ends, including clauses 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 15 and 16, continue in force.

15.2 Each hire of an item of Hire Goods is a separate Contract.

15.3 You are liable for the acts and omissions of your employees, agents and subcontractors as if they were your own.

15.4 If you have a question or complaint, email hello@hirealift.co.uk or write to us at our registered office. We acknowledge complaints within 2 working days and aim to resolve them within 7 to 10 working days, working with our supplier partners as needed. Refunds, where due, are processed within 10 working days, subject to banking times.

15.5* You will indemnify us against losses, claims and costs (including legal costs) arising from your breach of contract, negligence or breach of statutory duty.

15.6 If we delay in enforcing any right, we may still enforce it later.

15.7 If any provision is found unenforceable, the rest of the Contract is unaffected.

15.8 The Contract is the entire agreement between us, and neither of us relies on any statement not set out in it.

15.9 We are not liable for delay or non-performance caused by Force Majeure, and the time for performance is extended accordingly.

15.10 You may not transfer the Contract without our consent. We may transfer it to a member of our corporate group or a buyer of our business, and may subcontract our obligations, remaining responsible for our subcontractors.

15.11 No third party has rights under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999.

15.12 The Contract is governed by the laws of England and Wales, and either of us may bring proceedings in the courts of England and Wales.

16.1 Under these terms you are responsible for accidental damage to the Hire Goods during the Hire Period. Hired-in plant claims carry an excess of £1,700.

16.2 Subrogation is the ability of an insurer to step into the shoes of the hire company and claim its losses directly from the hire company's customer. A waiver of subrogation is an agreement that prevents the insurer from seeking that recovery from you. Where the Damage Waiver applies, we take all necessary steps to ensure that our hired-in plant insurers waive recovery of your initial contribution toward the £1,700 claim excess: up to £50 for the Standard Damage Waiver, or up to £200 for the Premium Damage Waiver, for accidental damage during any one Hire Period.

16.3 The Damage Waiver is not an insurance product. It does not cover theft, and it is not cover for the full cost of a claim.

16.4 The Damage Waiver only applies where it is on your booking and you have paid for it, and the damage is accidental.

16.5 You remain fully responsible for damage to the Hire Goods if:

• the damage was directly or indirectly the result of misuse or use contrary to instructions or specifications, failure to use the Hire Goods in line with the manufacturer's guidelines, malice or any deliberate act, negligence or want of care, or an act or omission of anyone who is not you, your subcontractor or in your direct employment;
• the Hire Goods are lost, stolen or otherwise not returned;
• the damage is not reported to us, by email to hello@hirealift.co.uk or by phone on 0333 038 4946, within 48 hours of it happening; or
• the damage is otherwise the result of your breach of these terms.

16.6 You remain liable for the rest of the £1,700 claim excess after the Damage Waiver contribution, and for any further loss, in line with these terms.

16.7 Where a machine carries the Premium Damage Waiver, you can only remove it by showing us your own suitable hired-in plant insurance under clause 5.3. If you upload a HiPI certificate while booking, the Premium Damage Waiver stays on the order while we review it and your order goes ahead either way. If we approve it, we remove the Premium Damage Waiver and any credit due follows our normal refund process. If we cannot approve it, the Premium Damage Waiver stays on.