A family of four and three bikes in the right sizes
It is a bank holiday morning and a family arrives for the e-bikes they booked by phone. The booking says four adult bikes. It does not say that one of them is a teenager who needs a small frame, and the only small e-bike is out with someone who booked online through a different form. There are helmets, but the right sizes are in a box in the back.
Later a hire bike comes back with a scuffed derailleur and a loose mudguard. Was that there before? The clipboard sheet from this morning says 'OK' against the bike, in handwriting nobody recognises.
Hire is run like a diary, not a fleet
Many shops take hire bookings in the same diary as workshop jobs, or in a simple booking tool that knows about time slots but not about individual bikes. The fleet itself, each bike with its size, type and service state, lives in the head of whoever runs hire.
- Bookings are for 'a bike', not for a size or a specific fleet bike.
- Phone, email and online bookings are held in different places.
- Hire bikes due for a service are not blocked from booking.
- Rider details, agreements and deposits are on paper forms.
- Condition at handover and return is a tick box with no photos.
Double bookings and damage arguments
A double-booked size means a disappointed customer and often a refund on the day. A hire bike sent out overdue for a service risks a breakdown during someone's day out. And a damage claim with no evidence is an argument you will usually let go, which means paying for the repair yourself.
What your hire agreement says about damage, deposits and riders' responsibilities is a matter for your terms and your adviser. The system simply makes sure each step is recorded.
Hire booking that knows every bike in the fleet
We build a hire system around your actual fleet.
- Each hire bike is listed with its type, frame size, battery if electric, and service state. Helmets and accessories are listed by size too.
- Online booking asks for each rider's height, and offers only the sizes that are free for those dates. Phone bookings are entered in the same place.
- Rider details, your hire agreement and the deposit are taken online through Stripe or your card provider before the day.
- Hire bikes due for a service or with an open workshop job are blocked from booking until they are signed off.
- At handover, staff check the bike on a tablet, take photos and record the battery charge. The rider signs on the screen.
- At return, the same checklist and photos are repeated, and any difference is flagged with the before and after photos side by side.
| Moment | Clipboard | Hire system |
|---|---|---|
| Booking | A bike for Saturday | Medium e-bike, rider 175cm, helmet M |
| Service due | Remembered, or not | Bike blocked until signed off |
| Handover | Tick box | Photos, battery charge, signature |
| Return | Looks fine | Before and after compared |
A hire desk that runs on busy days
Families get the sizes they need. Hire bikes are serviced before they go out, not after they break down. Handover is quicker because the paperwork is done online, and returns are quicker because the checklist is short and clear. When damage does happen, you have photographs from both ends of the hire.
You also see which bikes earn their keep and which spend more time in the workshop than out on hire, which helps when you decide what to replace next season.
Is your hire fleet run from a clipboard?
- You have double-booked a size on a busy day.
- Hire bookings arrive by phone, email and website into different places.
- Hire bikes have gone out overdue for a service.
- You have let a damage claim go because you could not prove when it happened.
- Paper agreements are filled in at the counter while customers wait.