Equipment Rental Protection Plans
Equipment rentals often aid new and established business owners with conducting upgrades, completing repairs, and performing daily operations. Many rental companies offer a Rental Protection Plan (RPP). This plan is optional. Research what a rental company's plan covers and assess your situation to determine if you would like to purchase one.
Terms Of Service
A Rental Protection Plan is not to be used in place of insurance. It is a supplemental protection policy that will minimize costs to the end-user. The outline of a protection plan and what it covers will be listed in the terms of service that are printed on a rental agreement. A rental company that is part of a franchise may use the same terms for each of their locations. An independent equipment rental facility could have vastly different terms than a comparable rental facility that is owned and operated by another independent owner.
A client may need to pay their balance in full or rent equipment for a specified amount of time in order to be deemed eligible for a protection policy. Any misuse of equipment or damage and theft that are a result of negligence will likely not be covered by a plan. A plan may not cover the overall cost of a machine or its repair needs. Make sure that you read a plan's terms in entirety, prior to committing or not committing to the purchase of the plan.
Risk Factors
Where you will be using the rental equipment and the length of time that you will have the equipment in your possession should be assessed. The storage area that you have for equipment and security devices that you will be using should also be researched. If you will be renting a small piece of machinery that will be used to complete an indoor task and your company's security is sufficient, you may decide to forego purchasing a protection plan.
If rental equipment will be used for a long duration and several people will be responsible for using the machinery, a protection plan may be something that will make you feel more secure about having the items in your possession. If equipment will be used in an outdoor environment and you have somewhere sufficient to store the items, you may not have a need for additional protection. Learning how to use rental equipment and limiting who will have access to each tool or piece of machinery will keep the rentals protected.
Reach out to a professional who provides equipment rental services for more information.