Someone on site says the roller can go back. Someone emails the yard. Someone is pretty sure they called.
Accounts still get the invoice.
What the conditions actually say
Under the CPA Model Conditions for the Hiring of Plant (2021), the hirer may off-hire by written notification (including electronic device or app). Off-hire is only accepted if the owner issues an off-hire confirmation to the hirer. Saying it once into the void is not the end of the hire.
For tools and equipment, the CPA supplementary conditions go further: off-hire must be in writing; each item identified so the owner can issue a unique off-hire number; without that number the hirer remains responsible for hire charges; if off-hired kit is not available for collection, it can be deemed back on hire.
National account terms follow a similar line. Speedy’s customer terms keep charges running until an off-hire or collection number is in place and the equipment is returned or collected within the stated window. Failed collection can keep the clock running.
Hire Association Europe guidance on end-of-hire procedure (owner side) stresses clear, accepted notification methods and condition records. Process matters more than what people thought happened.
Why offices lose disputes
Accounts payable write-ups of CPA-style plant invoices make the same practical point: a portal or written off-hire with a supplier reference is the clean evidence chain. Verbal instructions and unacknowledged emails are weak when the statement arrives.
So the expensive moment is often not the day rate. It is the gap between “we thought it was off” and “show me the confirmation.”
What to keep with the hire
For hired plant and equipment, treat stop-charge proof like a delivery note:
- Who requested off-hire, and when
- Supplier confirmation / reference when they give one
- Collection or return path
Many suppliers will not issue a neat unique number every time. Capture the reference when it exists. Do not invent one. Do not treat a WhatsApp “yeah mate we’ll grab it” as confirmation.
Keep it with the record
Keep stop-charge proof with the hire record, not only in an inbox thread that dies when someone leaves.
A phone call is not a number.
Sources
- CPA Model Conditions 2021 (example republication): cl.24(e) off-hire confirmation
- CPA Conditions Part 2 / tools (example republication): unique off-hire number; deemed back on hire
- Speedy Customer Terms & Conditions (UK)
- Invoice data / AP note on CPA plant hire invoices
- HAE Bulletin 40: end-of-hire procedure