Teardrop Trailers – Hire Terms
In a Nutshell...
We want you to have a great time whilst hiring any of our teardrops. Please take a few minutes to read all about our teardrops on their product pages. The full terms & conditions of your hire are below, but here’s a brief summary. Remember, we’re more than happy to answer any questions you may have.
- Your vehicle must have a towbar and a 7-pin or 13-pin electrical socket. The towing capacity must be sufficient to tow the teardrop (very light).
- The driver must have a full car driving license valid in the UK (this will give you the right to tow unless you have a medical exemption revoking your towing eligibility), the driver must be at least 25 years of age and they must have at least 2 years driving experience.
- You must always fit the easy-to-fit hitchlock (it takes seconds) whenever leaving the trailer unattended, as this is a condition of the insurance. Please also fit the easy-to-fit wheel lock.
- We do not provide any pitches for camping. You are welcome to tour anywhere in the UK.
- We cannot refund for bad weather. Just the same as if you were booking accommodation, if you cannot make the original booked dates for any reason then it is treated as a cancellation.
- You might not get back all your money if you cancel a booking.
- The trailer comes with a mattress & cover but no bedding / sleeping bags. You can bring your own bedding or you can hire some from us.
- Either bring your own numberplate or please let us know well in advance that you require one making.
- There’s no smoking or pets allowed in the teardrop.
- Please don’t attempt any serious off-roading whilst towing the teardrop.
Please see below for the full terms & conditions, or click here to download as a PDF.
Booking & Cancellations
- We strongly recommend that you take out travel insurance to cover the event that you may have to cancel your booking (this includes moving your dates) or that your booking may be cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances (force majeure).
- When booking direct with us (i.e. via our website or by phoning us) we ask for a 20% non-refundable booking deposit (£50 minimum) to secure your dates and to confirm your commitment to hire. When booking through a 3rd party portal, you may be asked to pay a deposit of a different amount. Please see our booking pages or the 3rd party portal’s booking pages to see the accepted methods of payment.
- The balance of the total hire charge is due 4 weeks before your hire begins, or at the time of booking if the start date is less than 4 weeks away. Please see our booking pages or the 3rd party portal’s booking pages to see the accepted methods of payment.
- When booking direct with us (i.e. via our website or by phoning us) a security deposit of £250 is required. This is to be paid within 14 days of your holiday. When booking through a 3rd party portal, you may be asked to pay a security deposit of a different amount. Please see our booking pages or the 3rd party portal’s booking pages to see the accepted methods of payment. If the equipment is returned in good order with no damage at the end of your hire period then the security deposit will be returned to you within 7 days if you have booked direct. If you have booked through a 3rd party portal, please see their terms & conditions for the timescale for security deposit returns.
- This hire service is automatically exempt from the Consumer Contracts Regulations (CCR) because the contract includes a specific date (your hire period) for the performance of the contract. When booking direct with us (i.e. via our website or by phoning us) our cancellation terms are as follows. When booking through a 3rd party portal, different terms may apply.
- Cancellation within 7 days of placing the booking: we will refund any paid monies in full within 7 days of cancellation.
- Cancellations more than 7 days after placing the booking & at least 4 weeks before the start of the hire period: we will refund any paid monies minus the booking deposit within 7 days of cancellation.
- Cancellation more than 7 days after placing the booking & less than 4 weeks before the start of the hire period: we will only refund the security deposit.
- If the booking has already commenced at the time of the cancellation, we will consider each situation individually regarding the refunding of any monies paid. We strive to ensure that the service you receive is as advertised and we can only compensate or refund guests if there has been a substantial misrepresentation on our part or a substantial failure to deliver the advertised service to you. We welcome all constructive feedback and urge guests to contact us as early as possible if there are any problems with the equipment hired to you.
- Changing holiday dates – if you need to substantially change your hire dates then this falls under our cancellation terms as we face the same prospect of not being able to re-let the original dates. Please always notify us as soon as possible of any changes.
- In all cases where we retain monies after a cancellation, we will do our utmost to re-hire the cancelled hire period. If we manage to do so, then we shall refund you by the smaller of the cost of your hire or the value of the re-hire. For example, if your hire fee was £350 and we manage to re-hire your cancelled period for £200, we shall refund you a total of £200 in addition to returning the security deposit.
- Please note that our hire charges do not include any campsite fees that you may incur or any other fees that you may incur with a 3rd party.
- In the unlikely event of unforeseen circumstances such as an accident, damage, theft of the equipment or “force majeure”, we reserve the right to cancel your booking. If it is not possible to provide you with a satisfactory replacement teardrop, then we will refund all monies paid in full. This is the maximum extent of our liability to you and we cannot accept liability for any consequential loss.
- We shall not be liable for loss or damage to any of your property unless caused by our negligence. We strongly recommend that you have in place suitable insurance to cover the value of any personal possessions that you take on the hire with you.
Collection & Return
- We shall give you a time slot for collecting your teardrop trailer. Please try to make your time slot as we may have other customers collecting or returning items before and after you. Whenever you get to us, we shall endeavor to fit you in. But please understand there may be a wait at busy times.
- Please allow at least 20 minutes for the collection. We shall hook up the teardrop to your vehicle and we shall make sure that you are happy with its operation before you depart.
- We shall give you a time slot for returning your teardrop. Please try to make your time slot as we may have other customers collecting or returning items before and after you. Whenever you get to us, we shall endeavor to fit you in. But please understand there may be a wait at busy times.
- We shall remove the teardrop from the hitch of your vehicle at the end of your hire.
- If you’re really late back with the teardrop, please appreciate that we reserve the right to charge you an extra day’s hire. Late returns may mean that someone else can’t have the teardrop for the start of their holiday.
What is Included
- We shall provide the teardrop of your choice.
- The teardrop is supplied with a foam mattress (3” or 4” thick depending on the teardrop), a mattress protector and a cover sheet. Unless you have arranged to hire bedding, please bring your own sleeping bags or other bedding as you wish. If you also paid to hire bedding, we shall supply you with a duvet and 2 pillows.
- All hired items remain the sole property of Electric Explorers at all times.
What is Not Included
- You will need to arrange and pay for any campsite booking or any other accommodation arrangements you choose to make.
- The hire of the teardrop does not include any camping equipment beyond what is provided in the teardrop itself. The webpage for each teardrop gives a full list of all features and equipment that are supplied, together with a list of extras that you can choose to add to your hire.
Trailer Numberplate
- It is your responsibility to display your vehicle’s registration number on the trailer at all times during your hire. If you do not have a suitable numberplate, we are happy to supply one to you for a small fee. Alternatively, there are many other numberplate makers who can send you one by next day delivery.
- If you would like us to make you a numberplate, please let us know as soon as possible. We are a registered number plate supplier (RNPS), license # 67386. In order to make you a plate, we must see proof of your identity and proof of your entitlement to the numberplate. Please check the UK government website for the current list of acceptable documents. The most commonly used documents are your driving license and your vehicle’s V5 logbook. If you need any help, just get in touch with us and we shall tell you what we require.
Towing
- You are responsible for the teardrop trailer during the period of your hire.
- We insure the teardrop against theft or loss, but it is your responsibility to insure your vehicle and to ensure that you are insured 3rd party for towing the trailer. This is a legal requirement. Most insurers will automatically cover you 3rd party when towing, but you must satisfy yourself that you have this cover. By proceeding with the hire, you are stating that you have such insurance cover.
- Your vehicle must be fitted with a suitable towbar (with a standard 50mm towball) and it must have a 7-pin or 13-pin electrical socket by the towbar.
- Your vehicle’s towing capacity must meet or exceed the weight of the trailer plus the weight of anything you put in it whilst it is being towed. Each trailer on our website lists its weight and its maximum permissible load when towing.
- All drivers must be over 25 years of age at the start of the hire period, and they must have at least 2 years driving experience. The named hirer must be over 25 years of age at the start of the hire period.
- You must fit a numberplate to the trailer which matches the towing vehicle’s registration. We are happy to make one for you for a small fee but you will need to supply us with certain documentation before the hire. Please read the section ‘Trailer Numberplate’ for more details.
- It is your responsibility to ensure that your driving license allows you to tow the teardrop trailer. If you have a full UK driving license or an equivalent car license valid for use in the UK, then you will have towing eligibility. If you have a medical condition removing this entitlement, you will not be able to tow. It is your responsibility to check this.
- We shall make sure that the trailer is in a roadworthy condition and that it meets all legal requirements for use on UK roads. All our trailers are type-approved and they possess a VIN (vehicle identification number).
- It is your responsibility to comply with all applicable traffic laws whilst you are towing. The teardrops are much narrower than a standard caravan and so it is very unlikely that you will need to use extra wing mirrors when towing. However we cannot know the width of each customer’s vehicle and so the responsibility to comply with the regulations remains yours.
- Please do not drive off-road whilst hiring one of our teardrops. Unmade access roads to campsites and beauty spots are fine, but serious off-roading will risk damage to the teardrop and/or the towing vehicle.
Your Safety
- We shall clean the teardrop before your hire. Please return it in a similar state of cleanliness so that the next guests can enjoy their stay.
- There is strictly no smoking or vaping permitted in the teardrop trailer. This is not only for your safety; the smoke will impregnate the fabrics of the teardrop and it will probably trigger the smoke alarm. This will incur forfeiture of the security deposit as the teardrop will have to be taken out of service and deep cleaned.
- No naked flames or other heat sources (such as lit matches, candles, stoves etc..) are allowed in the teardrop trailer.
- Please make sure that any heating or cooking appliance or naked flame outside the trailer is far enough away to avoid damaging the trailer.
- Pets are not allowed inside the teardrop.
- There is a smoke alarm inside the trailer which will activate in the event of a fire. If the alarm sounds, get out of the trailer immediately.
- There is a carbon monoxide alarm in the trailer which will activate in the event of elevated carbon monoxide levels. If the alarm sounds, get out of the trailer immediately.
- There is a fire extinguisher inside the trailer for your use in a fire emergency, but your priority must be to exit the trailer. The fire extinguisher is suitable for use on all classes of fire.
- No more than the specified number of persons are allowed to sit/sleep in the teardrop trailer.
- It is illegal to carry anyone in the teardrop trailer whilst it is in transit.
- If your hire includes any mains electrical appliances (e.g. a toaster or a kettle), please make sure you do not use these in wet conditions. We regularly inspect and test all our portable mains electrical appliances but you are responsible for how you use them. If you notice any damage to an electrical item, please let us know at once and don’t use the item.
- Please always use the supplied set of wheel chocks to secure the trailer on level ground before unhitching. You must always site the trailer on level firm ground.
- The roof vent must be closed when the trailer is unattended, but for your comfort it should be left open for ventilation when occupied, particularly when sleeping.
- All instructions given during the handover of the teardrop trailers must be followed during the hire period to minimise the risk of personal injury, loss and/or damage.
Trailer Security
- The wheel clamp and hitch lock provided must be used whenever the teardrop is left unattended. This applies to situations when it is attached to a vehicle as well as when it is not attached to a vehicle. The hitch lock can be used both when the trailer is attached and when it is unattached, but you must not drive with the hitch lock attached. Doing so will restrict the movement of the hitch and this may damage the trailer, the lock and your vehicle.
- All doors of the teardrop trailer must be locked whenever it is unattended. You can lock the doors from the inside for your privacy.
- Please also close all windows whenever the trailer is unattended.
- All our teardrop trailers are fitted with tracking devices. These are solely in place to help with the recovery of stolen goods in the unfortunate event of any theft. The tracking devices only track the location of the teardrop trailer; they do not have the capability to do anything else. We would only access the tracking data in the event of theft.
Problems During Your Hire
- If you have any problems with the teardrop trailer during your hire, please let us know sooner rather than later so that we can see what we can do to put things right.
- If we are unable to fix a problem to your satisfaction, there may be the option to switch to an alternative teardrop trailer, though this will depend entirely upon the availability of another teardrop.
- If the trailer is stolen whilst in your care, you must notify us immediately. Please report the theft to the police, obtain a crime reference number and give this to us.
- In the event of an accident whilst towing the teardrop trailer and the teardrop has sustained/caused damage:
- Obtain the names and addresses of third parties, witnesses and registration numbers.
- Report the accident to the police and any emergency services as required. Do not accept blame or insist that the other party is at fault.
- Take photographs of the scene and any damage.
- Please contact us so that we may assess the damage prior to the trailer being towed any further.
- Depending on availability and at our discretion, we will endeavor to provide a substitute teardrop trailer, subject to your location and the remaining hire period.
- Please note that in all cases our liability to you is limited to the total sum of monies you have paid to us for the hire. This does not affect your statutory rights.
Security Deposit
- At the handover we shall inspect the teardrop with you so that you are happy with its condition at the start of the hire period.
- Please return the teardrop in a similar state of cleanliness so that the next guests can enjoy their stay.
- Please note that pets are not allowed inside the teardrop.
- If booked direct, we shall return the security deposit within 7 days of the end of the hire period. If you have booked through a 3rd party portal, please see their terms & conditions for the timescale for security deposit returns. If there is any non-trivial damage, soiling, or loss incurred to the hired equipment, then we shall deduct the cost of rectifying this from your security deposit. If the cost of rectification exceeds the value of the security deposit, you agree to pay us the difference up to a total of £500. This does not prejudice our right to seek extra redress in the event of gross negligence or malicious damage. You can choose to purchase excess cover from a 3rd party but we do not offer excess cover.
- We are not going to quibble over minor damage or wear & tear; we will not hold back the security deposit without reasonable cause. We much prefer to give the entire security deposit back to our customers.
- Please let us know of any damage or loss as soon as possible. This gives us the best chance to minimise our losses and to ensure the teardrop can be ready for the next guests.
Data Protection
- As part of the booking process, we collect the minimal amount of information required to manage your booking and to process your payment. We do not pass this information on to any 3rd party.
- We may email you once or twice a year about our services. You can opt out of our marketing emails by following the unsubscribe link in any marketing email from us, or by emailing us and specifying the email address that you wish unsubscribed.
- For more details about how we process your personal data, please see our Privacy Policy.
