Hiring plant transfers the machine to you and, in almost every standard hire agreement, transfers the risk with it. The hirer becomes responsible for loss or damage and for the hire charges that keep accruing while the owner sources a replacement.
The clause that creates the exposure
Plant hire in the UK is usually let under standard industry conditions which make the hirer responsible for the item from delivery to collection, however the loss happens, including theft and including damage that is nobody's fault. That is a contractual liability rather than a negligence one, which is precisely why an ordinary public liability policy does not answer it: public liability responds to your negligence, and this responsibility exists whether you were careless or not.
Continuing hire charges, the part that surprises people
When a hired machine is stolen, the owner loses both the machine and the income it was earning. Standard conditions therefore make the hirer liable for hire charges that continue until the item is replaced or the claim settled, which on a long lead time machine can run for weeks. Policies address this with a separate continuing hire charges limit expressed as a number of weeks or a sum. It is a named extension rather than an assumption, and it is the item most often missing from a cheap plant section.
Setting the sum insured from the hire agreement
The hire contract usually states the replacement value the hirer is responsible for, and that is the figure the policy should carry rather than a guess at the second hand price. Contractors who hire a mixture of small tools and large machines need a limit that covers the largest item on hire at once, and the limit is normally expressed per item and in total, so both need checking before a busy period when several machines are out simultaneously.
Security conditions, and where plant is stolen from
Plant theft claims cluster around a few situations: machines left on unsecured sites overnight, items left in an open compound, and keys or immobiliser fobs left with the machine. Insurers respond with conditions requiring immobilisation, secure storage where practical, and sometimes tracking devices on higher value items. Registering machines on the national plant register and fitting a tracker also improves recovery, which is why insurers ask about both.
Questions people ask about hired in plant insurance
Does public liability cover hired in plant?
No. Responsibility for hired plant comes from the hire contract rather than from negligence, so it needs a specific hired in plant section.
What are continuing hire charges?
The hire fees that keep running after a machine is lost or damaged, until it is replaced or the claim settles. They are covered by a named extension with its own limit.
How much cover do I need?
The replacement value stated in the hire agreement, sized to the largest item on hire and to the total value out at one time.