The short version
- Film the asset or serial number first, so the footage is tied to the machine on the agreement.
- Film the hour meter, the fuel and the odometer with the numbers legible.
- Film every attachment and accessory laid out — missing kit is billed like damage.
- Walk the machine, close on every existing mark, and check the guards and safety kit are present.
- Start it and run the functions on camera.
- Repeat it all at return, in the yard, before you hand over the keys.
What actually gets charged
Damage is only part of it. On a typical hire invoice the disputes are about a missing bucket pin, a cracked lens, an hour meter reading nobody agreed, fuel returned low, a machine returned filthy, or a day's extra hire because the drop-off was logged late. Each of those is evidenced by a clip that takes seconds to record and is impossible to reconstruct afterwards.
At collection
Identity and meters
- Asset or serial number, close and readable
- Hour meter or odometer
- Fuel or charge level
- The hire agreement's condition sheet, filmed
Attachments and accessories
- Buckets, blades, bits, cutting discs supplied
- Pins, keys, remotes, chargers, leads
- Hoses, couplers and adaptors
- Transit case, covers and straps
Condition
- Existing dents, cracks, bent panels
- Glass, lights, beacon, mirrors
- Tyres or tracks, and track tension
- Hydraulic hoses and any visible leaks
Safety and compliance
- Guards, covers and emergency stops present
- Inspection or test sticker in date
- Seat belt, ROPS, fire extinguisher where fitted
- Operator manual supplied
Then start it. Film it running, film each function moving, and film any warning lights. A machine that will not perform on site is a lost day, and the argument about whether it left the yard faulty is much shorter when there is footage of it running — or not — before you loaded it.
At return
- Film in the yard, before handing over. Same walk, same order, same meters.
- Film the hours and the fuel again. These two numbers produce more invoice disputes than damage does.
- Film the attachments going back, laid out as they were at collection.
- Record the time and who received it. On an out-of-hours drop, film the machine in the bay and the paperwork you left with it.
- Clean it first if the contract requires it, and film that it is clean — cleaning charges are common and rarely challenged successfully after the fact.
If you sub-hire or lend it on
The moment a machine passes to another trade on site, you need the same record at that handover — otherwise you are liable for damage you cannot place. Film it going out and coming back, with the same asset number in shot. The same applies to tools lent between crews; it feels excessive right up until a thousand-pound breaker does not come back.
Doing it with CompareAI Inspect
- A project per hire, with scans named for the machine and its attachments, so each has a before and after.
- Collection is Before, return is After, paired automatically — the AI reports what changed between them rather than describing a digger.
- Findings with location and severity, so a new crack in a panel is stated plainly instead of buried in five minutes of footage.
- A report with SHA-256 fingerprints you can attach to a query about an invoice, verifiable at compareai.work/verify.
- Offline capture for yards and sites with no signal; it uploads later.
Hire companies can run it the same way from the other side: a dated condition record per asset per hire, which settles disputes faster and evidences genuine damage properly.
Not legal advice. Hire agreements differ sharply on liability, damage waivers, consumables and what counts as fair wear. This guide is about evidence; what you are actually liable for is in your contract and, for plant, often in your insurance schedule too.
Questions people ask
What about consumables and wear parts?
Blades, discs, bits, teeth and filters are usually the hirer's cost and are not damage. The disputes come from disagreement about what was fitted at collection and how worn it was — which a close clip of the working end at handover settles in a second.
Who pays when a machine breaks down mid-hire?
It depends on whether it failed or was damaged, which is exactly what gets argued. Footage of the machine running normally at collection, plus a clip of the failure and any warning lights, is what separates a mechanical fault from misuse. Report it immediately and stop using it.
Is filming the serial number really necessary?
Yes. Hire fleets contain many identical machines, and footage of an unidentified breaker proves nothing. Ten seconds on the asset plate ties everything that follows to the item on your agreement.
What if I sub-hire the machine to another trade on site?
Record the handover in both directions, with the asset number in shot. Without it you carry liability for damage you cannot attribute, and the hire company will bill the name on the contract — yours.
How do I argue about hours or fuel after the fact?
You mostly cannot, which is why they are on the checklist. A legible clip of the meter and gauge at collection and at return is the entire argument; without it, the yard's figure stands.
We are the hire company. Does this work from our side?
Better, in fact, because you control the process. A dated condition clip per asset per hire means genuine damage is evidenced properly, disputes end quickly, and staff on the gate are not relying on memory. The app pairs each hire's collection and return automatically.