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Hire shop or neighbour? Renting tools in Ireland, compared

When a tool hire shop is the better choice, when borrowing from someone near you makes more sense, and how to compare the real cost of each.

5 min read

If you need a tool for one job, you have three choices: buy it, hire it from a shop, or rent it from someone near you. We've written before about the real cost of owning a drill. This post is about the other two, because hire shops and peer-to-peer rental are good at different things.

We run Nearby, so we're not neutral, but a hire shop is sometimes the better call.

When a hire shop is the better choice

Hire shops have served Irish towns for decades for good reasons. Go to one if:

  • The job needs heavy or specialist kit. Floor sanders, mini diggers, scaffold towers, large concrete mixers and industrial breakers are what hire shops are built for. They maintain them, they know how they work, and most people don't own one to lend.
  • You need it delivered or collected. Many hire shops will drop a large machine to the site and take it away again.
  • You need several of the same thing. A shop can give you three dehumidifiers on the same morning. A neighbour usually has one.
  • You want advice on the spot. Staff can tell you which blade or bit you need.
  • It's for a business job. Trades often have hire shop accounts with proper invoices.

When renting from someone near you makes more sense

Peer-to-peer rental tends to suit the everyday things that most homes have one of, used now and then:

  • Household tools. Cordless drills, stud finders, palm routers, sanders, jigsaws. These are the things sitting in presses and sheds all over the country.
  • Small jobs and short notice. If the job is a shelf on a Saturday, a pickup down the road can be quicker than a drive to the nearest hire depot.
  • It can cost less. On Nearby each lender sets their own daily price, and for small household tools those prices are often a few euro a day. Hire shops price for commercial-grade kit, staff and premises. Whether renting from a neighbour works out cheaper depends on the full cost of the booking, so compare like with like (below).
  • Things a hire shop doesn't stock. A bike repair stand, a steam cleaner, a roof bike rack.

A neighbour's drill is a home drill, not a site drill. That's ideal for a few holes in a wall, less so for a week of work in concrete.

How to compare the real cost

Daily prices are easy to compare badly. Before you choose, line up the full cost of each option for the same job:

  1. The daily or weekend rate. Hire shops often quote prices without VAT, so check whether VAT is added at the till.
  2. The minimum hire period. Some shops charge a half day or a full day as the minimum. Check whether a weekend counts as one day or two.
  3. Deposits. Hire shops usually ask for a deposit or a hold on your card. On Nearby, only some items carry a deposit, and the listing shows the amount before you book. At pickup you're asked to place it as a hold on your card, which isn't a charge. If your card can't hold it for the whole rental, your saved card stands in for it instead.
  4. Fees. On Nearby you pay the lender's price plus a 15% service fee, with a minimum of €2.50 per booking. On a €40.00 rental, the fee is €6.00. Some higher-value categories such as cameras and drones have a 25% service fee. The full breakdown is on our pricing page.
  5. Consumables. Drill bits, sanding sheets, blades and fuel are often extra at a shop. A neighbour might include a few bits, or might not, so ask in a message before you book.
  6. Travel. A short trip to a neighbour counts, and so does delivery for a heavy machine.

Add those up for the days you need, and the cheaper option is usually clear.

What happens if something breaks

At a hire shop, the hire agreement sets out what you pay if the machine is damaged, and some shops offer a damage waiver for an extra charge. Read it before you sign.

On Nearby, every rental includes the Nearby Guarantee for the lender. If an item is accidentally damaged or stolen during the rental, Nearby may, at its discretion, make a goodwill payment to the lender of up to €2,000 per item. It's not insurance, and it doesn't replace looking after what you borrow. Our post on how the Nearby Guarantee works explains it in plain English.

Either way, take a few photos at pickup and return. It settles most questions before they start.

A quick way to decide:

  • Big, heavy, specialist, or for a business: start with a hire shop.
  • Small, common, for a home job this week: see who has one near you first.
  • Not sure: check both. It takes five minutes, and the answer is often different for each job.

If you're ready to look, browse power tools or DIY gear near you. And if you have a drill or sander that hardly leaves the shed, you could list it on Nearby for the next person who needs it.