Consumer Hire Terms & Conditions

These Terms explain your responsibilities when hiring equipment from Bradbury Plant. Please read them before your hire begins.

1. Your Hire

These Terms apply when you are hiring plant or equipment from Bradbury Plant mainly for private or domestic use rather than for your business.

Your booking confirmation will identify the equipment, hire dates, hire price, delivery/collection charges and any additional agreed charges. Together, the booking confirmation and these Terms form our hire agreement with you.

2. Hire Period

Your hire starts when the equipment is delivered to the agreed address or collected by you. It ends when the equipment is returned to us or collected by us.

If we are collecting it, you must make the equipment available at the agreed location and reasonably accessible for collection. Please contact us before your hire ends if you want to keep the equipment longer.

Extensions are subject to availability and additional hire charges. If equipment is not returned or available for collection when agreed, additional hire charges may apply.

3. Price

The price of your hire will be shown before you confirm your booking. Any compulsory charges will be made clear before you enter into the hire agreement.

Additional charges may arise where reasonably necessary because of something occurring during the hire, for example additional hire days, missing fuel, excessive cleaning, lost accessories, customer-caused damage or recovery of equipment which has become stuck due to its use or site conditions.

We will only charge reasonable amounts reflecting the loss, work or cost involved.

4. Delivery

You must tell us about anything that may affect safe delivery or collection, including narrow access, weak driveways, soft ground, low structures or other obstacles.

You are responsible for ensuring that you have permission for us to enter the delivery location. Our driver may refuse to enter or unload somewhere they reasonably consider unsafe.

If we cannot safely complete a delivery because important access information was not provided to us, we may charge reasonable additional costs actually incurred.

5. Before Using the Equipment

We will supply the equipment in serviceable condition and suitable for its normal intended use. Please inspect it when you receive it.

Tell us promptly if something appears damaged, an item is missing, a warning light appears, the machine is leaking, something does not work properly, or you believe it is unsafe.

You will not be charged for damage that existed before your hire.

6. Using the Equipment

You must take reasonable care of the equipment. Only someone who is competent and capable of operating the equipment safely should use it.

You must follow the operating and safety instructions provided; use the equipment only for its intended purpose; stay within its operating limits; keep people clear of the working area; not disable safety or security equipment; and stop using it if you reasonably believe it has developed a dangerous fault.

Please contact Bradbury Plant if you are unsure about operation.

7. Your Site

You are responsible for checking that the area where you intend to operate the equipment is suitable.

Before digging you should identify underground services such as electricity, gas, water, drainage and communications. You should also consider overhead cables, unstable ground, slopes, voids, septic tanks and other hazards.

Heavy machinery can damage lawns, paving, driveways and other surfaces even when operated correctly. We are not responsible for site or surface damage resulting from your operation of the equipment or unsuitable site conditions, except where the damage is caused by something for which Bradbury Plant is legally responsible.

8. Breakdown

If the machine breaks down or develops a fault, stop using it where continued use could cause damage or create a safety risk and contact us.

You will not be responsible for genuine mechanical failure, an inherent defect or normal wear and tear.

Where the equipment cannot reasonably be used because of a fault for which we are responsible, we will provide an appropriate remedy having regard to the circumstances, which may include repair, replacement equipment or an appropriate adjustment to the hire charge.

Nothing in these Terms affects your statutory rights.

9. Damage Caused During Your Hire

You are responsible for taking reasonable care of the equipment while it is in your possession.

You may be responsible for the reasonable cost of repairing damage caused by careless or improper use, collision, overturning, overloading, using incorrect fuel, deliberate damage, or continuing to operate the machine after an obvious fault where doing so causes further damage.

You are not responsible for fair wear and tear, inherent defects or damage caused by a fault for which Bradbury Plant is responsible. We will assess damage reasonably and explain any charge made.

10. Tracks and Tyres

Normal wear is included in your hire. You may be responsible for damage caused by misuse or avoidable hazards, including punctures, cuts or significant track damage.

A track coming off does not automatically mean you will be charged. We will consider why it happened. If it resulted from normal operation or a mechanical problem, it is our responsibility. If it resulted from misuse or an avoidable obstruction, reasonable repair or call-out costs may be charged.

11. If the Machine Gets Stuck

Please consider the ground conditions before driving onto soft or unstable ground.

If equipment becomes stuck, bogged, submerged or otherwise immobilised because of the way it has been used or because of site conditions, you may be responsible for the reasonable cost of recovering it.

Contact us before attempting a difficult recovery. Do not use another vehicle or machine to pull the equipment out where doing so risks causing further damage.

12. Fuel

Use only the correct fuel for the equipment. If the equipment is supplied with a full tank, please return it full unless your booking says otherwise.

If fuel is missing, we may charge the reasonable cost of replacing it and refuelling the machine. Damage caused by incorrect or contaminated fuel supplied during your hire may also be charged where you are responsible for it.

13. Cleaning

Normal dirt from ordinary use is expected. Please remove excessive mud and debris before the equipment is collected or returned.

Additional cleaning may be charged where equipment is returned excessively contaminated with materials such as concrete, paint, asphalt/bitumen, excessive compacted mud, waste or hazardous material.

Any cleaning charge will reflect the reasonable additional work and cost involved. Please tell us before collection if the equipment has been exposed to hazardous material.

14. Insurance

You are responsible for having your own insurance in place to cover the equipment while it is in your possession, including loss, theft, accidental damage and third-party liability arising from its use. Many home contents or public liability policies do not automatically cover hired plant and equipment — please check your policy or arrange specific hired-in plant cover before your hire begins.

We may ask you to confirm that suitable insurance is in place before delivery. Not having insurance does not remove your responsibility for the equipment under these Terms.

This does not affect your responsibility for damage, loss or theft as set out elsewhere in these Terms, nor does it limit any rights you have as a consumer.

15. Theft

You must take reasonable steps to keep the equipment secure.

When it is unattended, remove the keys, use security devices supplied with the machine, keep keys somewhere secure and, where reasonably possible, leave the equipment in a secure location.

If equipment is stolen, contact Bradbury Plant and the police immediately and provide us with the crime reference number. You must reasonably cooperate with us and our insurer in investigating the theft.

You may be responsible for loss resulting from theft where the loss occurred because you failed to take reasonable care of the equipment or comply with reasonable security requirements that were clearly explained to you.

16. Loss or Serious Damage

Tell us immediately if the equipment is lost, stolen, seriously damaged or involved in an accident.

Where you are legally responsible for loss or damage, we may seek the reasonable cost of repair or replacement, taking account of the equipment's condition, age and value immediately before the loss.

We will not use a damage charge to place Bradbury Plant in a better financial position than it would have been in had the loss not occurred.

17. Buckets, Keys and Accessories

Please return all items supplied with the machine, including buckets, pins, keys, security devices, chargers and other attachments.

If something is lost or damaged through your actions, we may charge the reasonable repair or replacement cost.

18. Moving or Lending the Equipment

Unless we agree otherwise, please keep the equipment at the delivery address shown on your booking.

You must not sell, lend, sub-hire or dispose of it. The equipment remains the property of Bradbury Plant. Contact us if you need to move it to another location.

19. Tracking and Security

Some of our equipment may contain GPS trackers, telematics or other security systems.

These may be used to locate our equipment, prevent or investigate theft, record machine hours, assist servicing, investigate accidents or damage, and manage the hire.

You must not remove, disable or interfere with these systems. Any personal information will be handled in accordance with applicable data-protection law and our privacy information.

20. Ending the Hire Early

You may contact us if you wish to end your hire early. Any refund or cancellation charge will depend on the circumstances, the agreed hire period and applicable consumer law.

We will not impose a charge that is disproportionate to the loss reasonably caused by cancellation.

21. Our Responsibility

Nothing in these Terms excludes or restricts any legal rights you have as a consumer.

Nothing excludes or limits our liability where it would be unlawful to do so, including liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence.

We are responsible for supplying equipment that meets the legal standards applicable to the hire.

22. Ending the Agreement

We may end the hire early where there is a serious breach of these Terms, including dangerous or unlawful use, deliberate damage, theft risk or refusal to return our equipment.

Where reasonably possible we will explain the problem and give you an opportunity to correct it before ending the hire.

23. Complaints

If you believe there is a problem with the equipment, a charge or the service you have received, please contact Bradbury Plant so that we can investigate it.

We will deal with complaints reasonably and will not restrict any rights or remedies available to you under consumer law.

24. Governing Law

This agreement is governed by the law of England and Wales. Nothing in this clause removes any mandatory consumer rights concerning where proceedings may be brought.