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Insurance explained
Hired-in plant insurance covers your liability for loss of or damage to plant you hire from others, while it is your responsibility under the hire contract. It matters because standard hire terms commonly make the hirer pay for the plant, and continuing hire charges, whatever caused the loss.
Part of: Commercial insurance
In short
Hired-in plant insurance covers machinery and equipment a business hires in, such as excavators, access platforms and generators, against loss, theft and damage during the hire. It exists because hire terms like the CPA Model Conditions usually make the hirer responsible for the plant from the moment it leaves the depot until it is returned, and allow hire charges to continue at idle time rates until the claim is settled. Operated hire still usually leaves the hirer responsible, while a contract lift transfers responsibility for planning, supervising and carrying out the lift to the crane hire company.
Hired-in plant insurance protects a business against the cost of plant and equipment it has hired from someone else being lost, stolen or damaged while it is the business's responsibility. Typical items include excavators, dumpers, telehandlers, access platforms, generators, scaffolding towers and small tools.
The cover exists because of the hire contract, not because of ownership. Much UK plant hire is done on the Construction Plant-hire Association's Model Conditions for the Hiring of Plant. The CPA says its 2021 terms are the current set, and that the 2011 Model Conditions remain valid for ongoing hire agreements made under them.
The CPA Model Conditions commonly place wide responsibility for loss of or damage to hired plant on the hirer. Subject to some other clauses, the hirer must make good to the owner all loss of or damage to the plant "from whatever cause the same may arise", fair wear and tear excepted. The hire period runs from when the plant leaves the owner's depot until it is received back. Wording and numbering in the 2021 edition may differ, so always check the contract you actually sign.
A hired-in plant policy is designed to respond to that liability. It usually pays the cost of repair or replacement up to the sum insured, and many policies can be extended to cover continuing hire charges.
Hire costs do not always stop when the plant does. Where plant is lost or damaged, hire terms commonly provide for charges to continue, usually at a reduced idle time rate, until a settlement is agreed.
In practice this means a stolen excavator can generate a bill for the machine itself plus weeks of reduced hire charges while the claim is agreed. Continuing hire charges cover is commonly offered as an extension with its own limit and maximum period, so it is worth checking both figures.
The same clause also includes an indemnity from the hirer to the owner against claims by any person for injury or property damage arising from the use, transport or loading of the plant during the hire period. That is a liability exposure, which is usually dealt with under public liability rather than the plant policy itself.
How the plant is supplied changes who carries the risk.
The hirer takes the machine and uses its own staff to operate it. Responsibility for damage, theft and how it is used sits with the hirer throughout the hire period.
Many businesses assume that if the hire company supplies the operator, the hire company is responsible. Under CPA-based terms, an operator supplied with the plant is commonly treated as working under the hirer's direction and control, so the hirer usually carries responsibility for claims arising from how the plant is operated. Hirers should ask their broker whether their employers' liability and public liability policies respond to that arrangement.
For cranes, HSE guidance on lifting operations says that when a crane is hired, responsibility for planning, supervision and carrying out the lift rests with the user unless the hire company explicitly takes these on. Hirers without the necessary competence will need a "contract lift", which transfers those responsibilities to the crane hire company.
The exceptions in the contract can decide a large claim. In Hewden Tower Cranes Ltd v Yarm Road Ltd [2003] EWCA Civ 1127, the Court of Appeal, by a majority, considered a tower crane collapse during climbing and upheld the finding that it fell within the exception for erection under the owner's exclusive control, so the owner bore the loss.
Plant cover often sits inside a wider construction package, so it helps to know which section does what.
| Cover | What it protects | Typical gap |
|---|---|---|
| Hired-in plant | Your contractual liability for plant hired from others | Continuing hire charges may need an extension |
| Own plant | Plant and tools your business owns | Does not respond to hired items unless stated |
| Contractors all risks | The contract works and materials on site | Plant may be a separate section with its own limits |
| Public liability | Injury or damage to third parties | Does not pay for damage to the hired machine itself |
| Goods in transit | Items being carried by road | Self-propelled plant on the road is usually a motor matter |
Common exclusions, subject to the policy wording, include wear and tear, mechanical or electrical breakdown, theft from unlocked or unattended sites without required security, and plant used outside the territorial limits. Plant driven on public roads may also need motor cover. Our guide to contractors all risks insurance explains how the works cover fits around plant.
Any business that hires plant or equipment on terms that make it responsible for loss or damage should consider the cover. The examples below are illustrative, not case studies.
Hire companies may offer a damage waiver as an alternative. It is worth comparing what the waiver excludes, such as theft, with a standing annual hired-in plant policy if you hire regularly.
Apex arranges hired-in plant cover alongside contractors all risks insurance; a broker reads every enquiry.
Under the CPA Model Conditions and many similar hire terms, the hirer is usually responsible for loss of or damage to the plant during the hire period, whatever the cause, apart from fair wear and tear and some specific exceptions. That is why hirers commonly buy hired-in plant insurance. Your own contract decides the position, so read it before the plant arrives.
Sometimes. Some contractors all risks packages include a hired-in plant section, but others cover only the contract works and materials. Even where it is included, the limit per item, continuing hire charges and theft conditions vary. Check the schedule rather than assuming the works cover extends to machines you hire.
They are the hire charges the owner can keep charging while lost or damaged plant is out of use. Under CPA-based hire terms, charges commonly continue at idle time rates until the settlement is agreed. Many hired-in plant policies cover these as an extension with a separate limit.
Not necessarily. Under the CPA Model Conditions, an operator supplied with the plant works under the hirer's direction and control and is treated as the hirer's servant, so the hirer is usually responsible for claims arising from the operation. A contract lift is different, because the crane hire company takes on planning and supervision.
No. A damage waiver is a contractual arrangement with the hire company that reduces your liability for damage, usually for a charge added to the hire. Waivers often exclude theft or certain types of damage. If you hire plant regularly, an annual hired-in plant policy may give broader and more consistent protection, subject to its terms.
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Start a commercial enquiry Request a callbackApex Insurance Brokers Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered in England and Wales, company number 07014570. This page is general information, not advice on your individual circumstances, and it does not guarantee that cover will be available or on what terms.
