Terms and Conditions 

When you come to hire a vehicle you will be required to read and sign the rental agreement which lists total charges and conditions of rental and is your contract with us.

 

1. Rental Agreement
When you sign the “Owner’s Liability and Declaration”/"Hire Form" you are entering a legal contract:
Please read this agreement carefully, if there is anything you do not agree with or understand please ask for assistance from a member of staff.

 

Rental Period

You have agreed to rent the vehicle from the time and date stated on your hire agreement and commit to return at the specified time and date. The period may only be extended if agreed in writing with us.
If you do not bring the vehicle back on time you are breaking the conditions of this agreement, we will charge you for every day or half day you have the vehicle at our daily tariff rates. If we have no contact with you we have the right to treat the vehicle as stolen and inform the Police.

 

Your Responsibilities
You must always

• Look after the vehicle and the keys.

• Lock the vehicle when you are not using it and use any security device fitted or supplied with the vehicle.

• Protect the vehicle against bad weather (i.e. storms or floods), which can cause damage.

• Use the correct fuel. If you refill the vehicle with the wrong fuel, contact us immediately or the RAC on

(0333 202 3000) and do not drive the vehicle. You will be liable for all costs incurred by us  having the fuel system cleaned and of rectifying any resulting damage to the vehicle.

• Let us know as soon as you are aware of any defect to the vehicle not only to minimise any breakdowns, but for your own safety, so that arrangements can be made.

 

You must not

 

• Sell, rent, loan or dispose of the vehicle or any part of it.

• Give anyone any legal rights to the vehicle.

•  Let anyone work on the vehicle without our recorded permission, if we do give you permission we will only give you a refund if we can validate the work and you produce a vat receipt for the work done.

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On return, one of our staff will inspect the vehicle to check its condition, fuel and mileage. If returning the vehicle outside of our normal business hours you will remain responsible for the vehicle and its condition until a member of our staff inspects it, You are liable for any damage caused to the vehicle during your hire period.

 

On the return of the vehicle you will have to pay if:
 

1. It is excessively dirty and requires more than a standard pre hire clean.
2. You have damaged the inside or outside of the vehicle.
3. You have, lost parts or wrongfully refuelled the vehicle.
4. The fuel is brought back less than you recieved it.
5. You have allowed the vehicle to overheat and damaged the engine through neglect.
6. You have allowed the vehicle to run low of oil, water and consequently caused damage to the vehicle.
7. There is damage to glass, tyres and punctures, and road wheels.

 

The above charges are over and above your fuel deposit if applicable
You must check prior to handing the vehicle back to us that you have not left any personal belongings in the vehicle.

 

2. Our Responsibilities
We will maintain the vehicle to at least the manufacturer’s standard. We undertake that the vehicle is roadworthy and suitable for renting at the start of the rental period.
We do not accept any responsibility for any personal expenses incurred or loss of hire by any breakdown or accident of the vehicle, but we will act with all due haste to assist either in the repair of the vehicle or in association with our nominated breakdown service.
We are not responsible for any indirect or unforeseeable losses or damage, we recommend that you arrange your own insurance if required for such losses.

 

3. Property
We are not responsible for property in the vehicle.

 

4. Conditions for using the Vehicle
The vehicle must only be driven by the person named on the hire agreement.

Anyone driving the vehicle must have a full valid driving licence with the correct vehicle entitlement for the type of vehicle driven and not prohibited by law from holding or obtain such licence.
All drivers must be over 21 or 25 years of age and under 80 years depending on vehicle, All drivers must be past their driving test for more than 2 years.

 

You or any authorised drivers must not do any of the following:

• Carry passengers for hire and reward.

• Use the vehicle for any illegal purpose

• Use the vehicle for racing, pace making, testing the vehicle reliability, speed or teaching someone to drive.

• Use the vehicle under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

• Carry a number of people in excess of the recommended number,

• Overload the vehicle or in the case of a commercial vehicle a payload which exceeds the maximum payload or axle plated payload.

 

We currently Do Not Allow our vehicles to go abroad. Only within the UK - (Scotland, England, Wales, Northern Ireland) 

 

5. Charges
 You will pay the following charges:
1. The rental as per the daily, weekly or monthly rate agreed.
2. Additional Insurances charges.
3. All fines and court costs for parking, traffic, speeding or other Offences (including any costs which arise if the vehicle is clamped or impounded). You must pay the appropriate authority of any fines or costs. If you do not, you will be responsible to pay our administration charges, which arise when we deal with these matters.

4. Any loss of income charge. We will charge you this if we cannot rent out the vehicle because it needs to be repaired, or if it is a write-off.

5. Any charges made by the Customs and Excise as a result of seizure of the vehicle by them, together with any loss of income charge whilst the vehicle is unavailable for hire.

6. Any delivery and collection charges necessary.

7. If the overdue amount is not settled by the date agreed we will inform our debt collection team and you the consumer or company will be held liable for all costs incurred.

8. We can demand the vehicle to be returned or we will collect and you will be charge a collection fee or the suitable authorites will be called.

9. VAT and any other taxes on any charges listed above as appropriate.

10. Insurance excess

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6. Insurances
Our insurance covers you fully comprehensive but does not cover any contents or goods carried within the vehicle. 
In the event of a claim you are responsible for our insurance excess of £750, which you will have agreed to and signed for on the hire agreement.
If we allow you to arrange your own fully comprehensive insurance with written confirmation from your insurance company it is still your responsibility to see we are fully reimbursed for all costs. You are responsible for all insurance excesses as per your insurance agreement. If the vehicle is damaged or stolen you will let us negotiate with your insurers about whether the vehicle can be replaced or what compensation is due to us. You are financially responsible to settle any costs if the policy you have arranged fails and the vehicle is damaged, lost, stolen or claims made by any other innocent party.

 

7. What to do if you have an Accident
If you have an accident/incident you must not admit responsibility. You should take the name and addresses of everyone involved, including witnesses and take photos if you are able to. Immediately contact the insurers claim helpline

(0370 606 4912) and follow their instructions. You should make the vehicle safe and tell the Emergency services immediately if anyone is injured or there is a disagreement over who is responsible.

You must complete the Incident Report Form at the Cooks Van Hire office.

 

8. Ending of this Agreement
We have the right to end the hire agreement at any time. This will not affect our right to receive any money we are owed under this agreement and we can also claim extra costs from you if you do not meet any of the conditions of this agreement.

If we have to repossess the vehicle you will be liable for any costs incurred.

 

9. Owner’s Liability and Declaration

• I/We understand the contents of the hire agreement and I/We declare that the information given is, to the best of my/our knowledge and believe to be correct and complete. I/we agree that the statements in the hire agreement shall form the basis of the contract between the insurer and myself/ourselves and if the risk is accepted I/We undertake to pay the premium when called upon to do so. I/we understand that my/our information may also be disclosed to regulatory bodies for the purposes of monitoring and/or enforcing the insurer’s compliance with any regulatory rule that the vehicle will not be used for the carriage of passengers for hire & rewards.

• I/We undertake that the vehicle will not be used for the carriage of passengers for hire or reward.

• I/We undertake that only drivers disclosed in this hire agreement will drive and that to my/our knowledge have not been refused any motor vehicle insurance.

• I/We understand that this insurance terminates at the expiry of the period of hire stated on the hire agreement.

• I/We acknowledge that the insurance excess is £750 which the hirer is liable for.

• I/We accept liabilty for this vehicle from the period of hire stated on the hire agreement which includes Fines, Parking Tickets, Toll Charges, Goods in transit, Speeding Tickets, Damage (Dents, Tyres, Windscreen), Fuel Status, Insurance Excess.

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10. Deposits/Payments

Please note that we now only accept card payments for hires. A cash/card deposit can still be taken. Refunds for deposits are not automatic; customers must either call us or come into our office to recieve a refund. Please allow up to 5 working days for any card refunds to be processed.

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