Cherry picker finance for access hire firms and trades

Access hire companies

For a hire firm the platforms are the stock. Lenders look at fleet utilisation, hire rates, customer spread and how quickly the fleet is refreshed. A firm adding twenty scissor lifts for a national account will be asked about that account and the length of its commitment.

Trades buying for their own use

Sign makers, electrical contractors, telecoms businesses, tree surgeons and window and gutter cleaning firms usually buy because hire bills have become a fixed cost. Lenders want to see that the business has steady work at height and that the payment is comfortably covered by trading. Bringing hire invoices from the last year is one of the most persuasive pieces of evidence you can give.

A van-mounted cherry picker is a vehicle with a platform built on. Lenders usually finance the chassis and the access equipment as one asset, but they value the two parts differently: the van depreciates like any van, while the platform often outlives the chassis and can sometimes be transferred to a new one. Points to check:

• Weight. Most van-mounted platforms are built to stay at or under 3,500kg gross vehicle weight so they can be driven on a standard car licence and stay below the weight at which goods vehicle operator licensing can apply. Heavier truck-mounted platforms may bring driver licence, operator licence and tachograph requirements, depending on how the vehicle is built and used.
• Who supplies it. Platforms are often built by a converter rather than the van dealer, so the finance may need to pay two suppliers. Tell us at the outset and lenders can structure staged payments.
• Contract hire. Some fleets prefer to contract hire van-mounted platforms with maintenance included, so the vehicle and platform go back together at the end.

For standard vans see our van finance page, and for mixed fleets our business vehicle finance page.

Because a cherry picker lifts people, the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 require a thorough examination by a competent person at least every six months, or in line with a written examination scheme. That is twice as often as most lifting equipment that only lifts loads. HSE guidance on LOLER explains the duties. Operators must be trained and competent, and the IPAF PAL card is the training standard most sites and principal contractors expect to see. Pre-use checks, harnesses and lanyards for boom work, and rescue plans complete the picture.

Lenders take an interest in examination records because a platform with a lapsed history can need significant work before it can be used or sold. In your budget, include examinations, servicing, batteries for electric machines, tyres, insurance and training, not just the monthly payment.

Limited companies, partnerships and sole traders can all apply. Lenders usually prefer at least a couple of years of trading, but newer businesses are considered where the owners have relevant experience, particularly for mainstream scissors and booms that resell easily. Borrowing of £25,000 or less by sole traders and small partnerships can be regulated consumer credit with additional protections. A weaker credit record does not rule finance out, but a larger deposit is likely.

The platform itself is the main security, as the lender owns it or holds title until the agreement ends. Directors of smaller companies are commonly asked for a personal guarantee. A deposit is often requested, and tends to be larger for older, specialist or customised machines. Separate property security is not normally needed for single platforms.

For a mainstream platform from an established dealer and a business with filed accounts, lenders can often make a decision within a few working days. Larger fleet deals, used machines needing inspection, and van-mounted builds involving a converter take longer. Agreeing finance before you commit to a build slot avoids paying a deposit to a supplier with nothing in place to fund the balance.

Illustration. A sign and graphics business has been hiring a van-mounted platform for two or three days most weeks, at a cost that has crept up over a year. It buys a used 3.5 tonne van-mounted platform for around £40,000 on a four-year hire purchase agreement, keeping hire for the occasional high-reach job. The monthly payment is lower than the previous hire bill, and the van doubles as a crew vehicle. These figures are hypothetical, and each lender sets its own terms.

• Keep hiring if work at height is occasional; the hire firm carries examinations and breakdown risk.
• Buy used through used equipment finance, often an ex-rental machine with a known history.
• Scaffolding or mobile towers for long-duration work on one building, where a platform would sit idle between short bursts of use.
• A crane with a man-riding basket for occasional very high access, though this needs careful planning; see crane finance.