Not At Fault

If your client is involved in a not at fault accident then the at fault insurance company will take care of the claim for the damage.

At Fault

If your client is at fault then the claim will need to be processed through your insurance.  We suggest discussing with your broker a policy that will allow the choice of repairer so you can repair the vehicle in your own shop to your standard.

When it comes to excess payments, a commercial insurance policy carries a commercial excess limit which can be a few thousand dollars.  There is an daily charge on each invoice called ‘excess reduction’  which reduces the clients excess liability in the vehicle to the same excess amount on their own policy.  As a client would not reasonably be expected to pay a commercial excess, this charge helps to mitigate the overall liability you as a repairer must carry as the owner of a commercial vehicle.

Tolls and cleaning can be a time consuming and costly issue to manage.  There are a couple of options when it comes to managing this;

Tolls

1. Place your own company e-tags in each vehicle and upon return of the vehicle, check your e-tag history for the rental period and charge the client for any tolls incurred.
2. Request your client use their own e-tag in your car for the rental period (not ideal).

Cleaning

1. Ask your clients to return the vehicle in the same state of cleanliness it was in when loaned to them.
2. If it is returned requiring a professional clean, you are well within your rights to request payment from the client for the cost in accordance with your rental agreement terms and conditions.

We suggest you have a document signed by the client at the time of the hire outlining the terms and conditions of using the vehicle to help mitigate risk to your business.  For information on rental agreements please see ‘rental agreement’ on our services page.

There are a range of options available to build a fleet of vehicles to provide to your clients;

• Purchase a vehicle outright
• Finance lease
• Operating lease
• Short term rental

Please see our ‘fleet mix’ section for information on how these options are structured.

We suggest you contact your insurance broker to discuss the best options for insuring your vehicles as rental vehicles.

Yes.  for taxation purposes you will be entitled to claim certain deductions against your vehicles.  You will in turn need to declare income generated by the vehicles.

In short, the answer is no. However, you can take reasonable steps to mitigate the risks of unrecoverable replacement vehicle money.

Validating the file prior to on hiring the vehicle involves confirming liability with parties and insurers involved to ensure your client is not liable for the accident.

• Accident diagram
• at fault insurance claim number
• $0 excess on your clients own insurance claim

These are not guarantees however they are good indicators.

No the car is not a courtesy car and it is not free for your client.

The car is a replacement vehicle and the client is entering into a contract that gives power to your appointed collections agency to recover the costs on their behalf from the at fault insurer.  The client is liable for all charges associated with the cost of the replacement vehicle and is liable until all costs are recovered.

It is important you as the owner of the vehicle inform the client that the car is not  a ‘free’ car.

However , the client will not be charged for the costs of the replacement vehicle regardless of whether the costs are recovered or not (unless the client has been intentionally misleading about information provided relating to the claim).

You are not entitled to claim these costs from the at fault insurer.

These costs will form part of your overall fleet costs and can be mitigated by a rental vehicle terms of use policy that holds the client responsible for cleaning, fuel and toll costs.