Hire of electrical equipment
- Regulations and requirements
- Equipment requirements when purchased for use as hire equipment
- Ongoing requirements
Regulations and requirements
Hiring electrical equipment is regulated by the Electrical Safety Act 2002 (PDF, 788 KB) and the Electrical Safety Regulation 2002 (PDF File, 1.02 MB) (PDF, 1 MB) through:
- the electrical safety obligations on the hire company
- the requirements equipment must meet before being sold to the hire company or used as hire equipment.
Equipment requirements when purchased for use as hire equipment
Electrical safety requirements for electrical equipment bought for use as hire equipment are the same as for equipment being offered for sale.
If the equipment is prescribed electrical equipment it should have a current certificate of approval if bought for use as hire equipment.
Hire equipment can continue being hired after the certificate of approval expires.
Non-prescribed electrical equipment must meet the requirements at the time the equipment was sold for use as hire equipment. The purchaser should make sure the equipment meets the requirements for non-prescribed electrical equipment before purchasing.
Unsafe electrical equipment can be prohibited for use as hire equipment by notices issued by the Electrical Safety Office.
Ongoing requirements
Electrical equipment must be inspected and tested by a competent person before each hiring unless a safety switch that cannot be disconnected, deactivated or removed is fitted. This inspection and testing does not require disassembly of the article.
All electrical equipment for hire must also be inspected, tested and tagged every six months by a competent person.
Hire equipment passing inspection and testing must be identified with a durable tag that also shows the next scheduled test date.
Any hire equipment failing inspection and testing must be immediately withdrawn from hire and labelled as unsafe to use with a durable tag.
Find out more about required tests for electrical equipment and tools.
Penalties are set in the Electrical Safety Regulation 2002 for not meeting the requirements for hiring, testing and inspecting electrical equipment for hire.