Get a dry hire agreement that matches how your equipment is actually hired out

Emails may record the dates and price, but they often leave out the points that matter when something goes wrong. In a dry hire arrangement, issues commonly arise around who is allowed to use the equipment, where it can be taken, who is responsible for maintenance during the hire period, what happens if it is damaged, and what charges apply for late return or cleaning. A proper agreement pulls those issues into one document so the commercial terms and risk allocation are clearer from the outset.

Most dry hire agreements deal with the hire period, fees, deposits if used, delivery or collection arrangements, permitted use, storage and care obligations, breakdown reporting, responsibility for loss or damage, insurance expectations, indemnity wording, and return conditions. They may also cover inspection on return, charges for missing parts, and termination rights if the hirer breaches the agreement. The right drafting depends on the type of equipment involved, because the risks for event gear, vehicles, machinery or specialist tools can look quite different in practice.

Important details include the type and value of the equipment, whether it is hired to consumers or businesses, whether you deliver it or require collection, how long hires usually last, and whether there are restrictions on location, use or sub-hire. It also matters whether the hirer is expected to arrange insurance, whether training or instructions are provided, and what happens if the equipment becomes unusable during the hire period. Those points can materially change the clauses around liability, risk transfer and return obligations.

A generic template can be a starting point, but it may not reflect the way your business actually operates or the specific risks attached to your equipment. For example, a template may not properly address consumables, operator exclusions, transport responsibility, security requirements, or the consequences of unauthorised use. It may also use broad wording that is not well matched to New Zealand practice. A tailored agreement is usually more useful when your hires involve valuable equipment, repeat customers, or situations where damage and downtime could become expensive.

With dry hire, you are supplying the equipment only, and the hirer is generally responsible for operating it. Wet hire usually involves supplying both the equipment and an operator. That difference matters because the contract needs to reflect who controls the equipment during the hire, who is responsible for safe use, and where liability should sit if something goes wrong. If your business sometimes offers both models, it is important that the agreement is drafted for the correct arrangement rather than relying on wording meant for a staffed service.

Just submit an enquiry via this page or click the 'get started' button on our website to submit an enquiry. After you've submitted an enquiry, one of our legal consultants will review your enquiry within 1 business day and get in touch to get a better idea of exactly what you are looking for.

Then your legal consultant will send through an email with a bit more information about the services you need, along with a fixed fee quote setting out costs, scope of the service and timing. Have a read through it, and if you're happy with the scope, you can accept and sign our engagement letter online - easy!

Once you've formally accepted, we'll connect you with a specialist lawyer and they will work with you to complete your project. They will contact you by email or phone if they need to get in touch.

Sprintlaw works on fixed-fee pricing wherever possible, so you can review the scope and cost before you decide whether to proceed. For the Dry Hire Agreement service, pricing starts from $900.00.

After you enquire, a legal consultant will confirm what is included, the expected timing and whether any extra work is needed before you engage us.

We operate completely online, which means we can help you wherever you are in New Zealand. We have office spaces in Sydney, and in Melbourne, but our use of technology allows our team members to work remotely from around the world. Our legal team are mostly based in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth. We also have a London office for Sprintlaw UK.

Our legal team is made up of experienced lawyers, who are specialists in various areas of law and hold an Australian legal practising certificate. None of our Sprintlaw lawyers are New Zealand qualified lawyers and they do not currently hold a New Zealand practising certificate.

They provide legal services working remotely from Australia via our 'legal consultancy' model, through which (under section 6 and section 35 of the New Zealand Lawyers and Conveyancers Act 2006) our Australian legal team are permitted to provide legal services to New Zealand businesses provided they do not provide services in certain 'reserved' areas of law. You can read our FAQ page to learn a bit more about our 'legal consultancy' model.

Given the strong similarities between Australian and New Zealand law, and the areas of law in which we practice (being small business and startup law), we do not view the fact that our lawyers have not qualified in New Zealand as having any substantive impact on the quality of our service. We are committed to ensuring that we provide high quality, affordable legal services to all our New Zealand clients.

Our legal team have all trained at leading firms, but have left the traditional corporate law world to join us on our mission to create a new and better way of delivering legal services. They have specialist expertise in technology law, intellectual property law, contract drafting and review, corporate law and commercial law.