The moment to deal with damage is check-in — the gear is in your hands, the booking is known, and the customer conversation is still fresh. Rennt makes it one motion: when you scan a returning unit in Check-in / out, tick "Returned damaged / needs maintenance", enter the damage charge amount, and press Check in. The charge bills to the booking the unit was checked out on, and the unit goes into maintenance instead of back into the available pool.

What happens to the money#

The charge lands on the booking's running total — open the booking in Bookings and you will see it with the extra charges, reflected in the Payments ledger balance. From there it plays out however you handle damage:

• Holding a security deposit? Keep the charge against it and refund the remainder from the ledger.
• Charging the customer? The booking now shows exactly what they owe and why. On Pro, Send email from their record — politely, with the photo.
• Selling damage waivers? Normal wear is absorbed (that is what the waiver bought); negligence and loss are still billable if your rental agreement says so.

For charges not tied to a scanned unit — a lost extension cord, a cleaning fee — use Add charge on the booking detail directly. Same ledger, same running balance.

Make it stick#

• Photograph the damage at check-in, before the unit moves. A timestamped photo next to your proof-of-delivery photo from setup is a closed case.
• Price from your agreement, not from anger. "Repairs billed at cost, loss at replacement value" is easy to defend; a made-up round number is not.
• Tell the customer the same day. A damage charge discovered by the customer on their card weeks later becomes a chargeback; a same-day email with a photo becomes an apology.