Rental agreement template: what every equipment rental agreement needs

The rental agreement is what you rely on when equipment comes back broken, late or not at all. A good agreement is short enough to read at the counter and already settles every disputed point.

What to include

• Parties: your company and the customer — name, ID document, phone, address.
• Item: what exactly was handed out — type, model, inventory or serial number, kit contents.
• Period: checkout and return date and time, how to extend.
• Price and payment: tariff, total, what counts as payment.
• Deposit: amount, when and on what terms it is returned and what it can be withheld for.
• Condition at checkout: the customer inspected the item and received it in working order — ideally with photos.
• Use rules: who may use it, where, no handing over to third parties.
• Liability: damage, loss, theft and late return — with prices or how they are calculated.
• Return: where, in what condition, what happens if late.
• Consent to personal data processing and, for electronic signing, a clause that the e-signature equals a handwritten one.

Template

Below is a basic text. Fill in your details and have a lawyer review it — rules differ by country and equipment type. Download the Word file.

• 1. The Lessor hands over and the Lessee accepts for temporary use the equipment: type, model, inventory number and kit as described in this agreement.
• 2. Rental period: from __ (date, time) to __ (date, time). Extensions by agreement and upon payment.
• 3. The rental price under the tariff __ is __, payable at checkout.
• 4. The Lessee pays a security deposit of __. It is returned when the equipment is returned on time and in working order; late fees and repair costs are withheld from it.
• 5. The Lessee has inspected the equipment, received it in working order and has been briefed on safe use.
• 6. The Lessee may not hand the equipment over to third parties, sublet it or use it outside the permitted area.
• 7. Late return is charged per started tariff period.
• 8. Damage is compensated at repair cost; loss or theft at replacement cost of __.
• 9. The parties agree that the Lessee's simple electronic signature equals a handwritten one (if signed electronically).
• 10. The Lessee consents to processing of personal data to perform this agreement.

Common mistakes

• No inventory number — you cannot prove which bike was handed out.
• A deposit without return terms — disputes about how much to keep rarely go your way.
• Holding an ID document as a deposit — often illegal and risky; take a cash deposit instead.
• Liability 'in full' without prices — customers argue every amount. A price list for typical damage works better.
• A signed agreement but no condition photos — the customer says the scratch was there. See handover report and checkout photos.

Stop printing agreements

In ProkatOS you write the agreement once, and customer, equipment, period and total are filled from the rental. The customer signs with a finger on a tablet or by a link from an email, and gets a copy. See electronic rental agreements.