In most instances, fraud perpetrators are going to take the easier target. This is why you may wish to protect your rental equipment with multiple layers of security.
The ‘would-be fraudster’ ideally is required to go through multiple layers of screening before they get to your rental equipment. The more layers of screening the offender must go through, the more it should deter them from hiring the equipment, and they will generally move on to an easier target.
5 Mitigation Strategies Against Hirer Fraud
1. Equipment Registration
Ensure all relevant equipment is registered with the appropriate state transport department.
2. Personal Property Securities Register (PPSR) Registration
Ensure all equipment is registered on the PPSR. Registering equipment through this system makes it easier to track the item if attempts are made to on-sell the item through a reputable machinery dealer.
The PPSR provides valuable information to the whole industry. Successful recovery rates, both short-term and long-term, are predominantly higher if the equipment is registered on the PPSR.
3. Distinctive Branding
Attempt to change the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) colours of the machine with company colours, symbols and logos. It is generally much more desirable for a thief to steal a machine that looks identical or very similar to OEM colours, as it is harder to identify.
4. GPS Tracking
Fit two GPS units to each machine in different locations.
- The first unit is a decoy unit. It must operate and give out a signal, however, its primary purpose is to be located and detached by the thieves.
- The second unit would be a sleeper device that does not transmit a signal until it is activated. This unit is activated by the hire company once a theft has been identified and can assist with the machine being swiftly located.
5. Robust Hiring Policies
The rental company may wish to adopt a robust hiring policy and procedures. In this regard, the following should be compulsory.
Sole Trader or Individual Hirers
100% verification including:
- Driver’s license and matching credit card
- Vehicle registration
- Contact details (phone number, email address and street address); and
- In-person attendance of hirer for visual verification.
Company or Business Hirers
- Perform a Creditor Watch check to confirm the business's registration status.
- Verify the business independently from the employee attempting to hire by:
- Conducting an online search
- Contacting the business directly to confirm the hire request; and
- Ensuring the employee has the authority to hire.
- Obtain sign-off from the company Director, including a copy of their photo ID.
- Be cautious with credit account holders, as fraudsters may use fake emails posing as employees to exploit soft hiring protocols.
Regardless of whether the customer is a long-term account holder, always consider the above hiring protocols.
Delivery or Collection Process
- Verify the hirer’s photo ID and vehicle registration.
- Take photographs of the hirer and their vehicle – fraudsters avoid being photographed as it aids police identification.
- Never deliver to a vacant site without the hirer present, and only deliver to the hirer – not a different person.
- Consider dashcam or body cam footage for deliveries.
- Regularly check the GPS data of your machines.
- Maintain contact with hirers to monitor the equipment – send someone to check on the last known GPS location if the hirer fails to respond to communication.
- If using third-party delivery providers, thoroughly screen the contracted business to ensure their reputation, as some Tilt Tray Operators have been involved, knowingly or unknowingly, with machinery theft.
Credit: Daniel Burke, Adjuster Corp
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