Introduction to drone rentals by Madison Area Drone Service:

Our goal is to make renting drones & similar equipment an easy, fun and safe experience.  We dislike fine print and hidden fees, so all of our agreements and billing fees are easy to understand and easy to view beforehand.  Most of all, we want you and everyone else to be safe while you enjoy your rental.  Basic Liability Insurance is included with every rental.  If you plan to use your drone for a commercial operation or would like the maximum liability coverage for additional peace of mind, this is available at an additional cost.  While the competition leaves you hanging, we make sure you are safe and ready to go before you receive your rental.  For additional peace of mind, add damage insurance to your rental term.  In the unlikely event that your rental is crashed, damaged or otherwise brought back in less than perfect shape, don’t worry, you’re covered*.  If you really enjoyed your rental and wish you could just keep it, you can!  Our Rent-To-Own* program means that your rental fee is applied to the rental purchase, should you choose to purchase the rental unit within 30-days of your last rental date.  Deciding on a new drone, or just renting one for fun or to get the job done, has never been more easy and affordable.

How it works:

  1. Select the product options above.
  2. Add to cart & check out securely online.
  3. Sign & return the digital E-File waiver you’ll receive by email after checkout (or fill out paper copy in store).
  4. Your rental starts once you have received the drone* – You can pick up in-store locally OR have it shipped to your doorstep.  E-Waiver completion is required prior to pickup or shipment.
  5. If you need it delivered by a certain time, please select the expedited shipping option of your choice at the checkout, for example “Next Day Air”
  6. You’ll receive your rental in person OR by mail.  Hurray!  Get outside and enjoy flying!  Your rental will arrive fully charged and ready to go*.
  7. When your rental time is up, return the drone in person OR drop it off at the UPS Store or UPS Dropoff point, by the required checkout time*.
  8. You’ll receive your Refundable Deposit fee back, once the rental is returned on-time* & in good condition*

Rental Start Time:

Your rental “starts” as soon as you receive the drone.  If you are picking up locally, your rental starts once you leave the shop.  If you are having your rental shipped to your door, your rental starts once we receive the confirmation of delivery from the shipper.

How to receive your rental:

  1. Stop by our local store for a quick & easy pickup.
  2. We’ll ship the rental to your doorstep.

Fully Charged, and Ready to Go!

You’ll receive your rental fully-charged and ready to go.  Please note, that if your rental requires a mobile device to work properly, such as a cell-phone or tablet to work, you are responsible for ensuring you have a compatible device with the proper application loaded in advance.  If you have any questions with regards to the operation of your unit or the proper device and application, please reach out to us as soon as possible.  Refunds will not be granted for issues related to device or app issues on your behalf.  For the best experience, we recommend renting a device with a Smart Controller, so no additional device or app is required to start using your rental.

Required Check Out Time:

You are responsible for ensuring a timely return of the rental items.  Please ensure that you reference your rental order time, in order to return it on schedule.  For example, if your 1-Day rental started at 11:00AM on Wednesday, your required check out (return) time would be 11:00AM Thursday.  Rentals not returned on-time are subject to a late-fee equal to the 1-Day rental rate, per day, until the rental is received back.  Please check your email inbox to reference your order completion time, as this will be your official order start time.

Monday-Friday returns:  Your rental must be returned to the store between the hours of 9AM-5PM by your rental Check Out Time OR your rental must be scanned into the UPS Store, FedEx store or similar pickup point by your rental Check Out Time.

Saturday returns: Your rental must be returned to the store between the hours of 10AM-2PM by your rental Check Out Time OR your rental must be scanned into the UPS Store or similar pickup point by your rental Check Out Time.

Sunday returns: Your rental must be returned to the store the following Monday, between the hours of 9AM-5PM by your rental Check Out Time OR your rental must be scanned into the UPS Store or similar pickup point by your rental Check Out Time.  NOTE: Saturday rentals require a 3-Day minimum rental duration!

How to return your rental:

  1. Stop by our local store during our regular business hours, to drop-off the rental.
  2. Ship the drone back to us (you are responsible for return shipping costs).

Return your rental in good condition:

You are responsible for returning the rental in the condition you received it.  If the drone, remote, propellers or other accessories is damaged in any way, heavily scratched, dropped, crashed or similar, your Refundable Deposit will be charged the corresponding amount to correct the damage.  If the cost to repair the damage exceeds your Refundable Deposit amount, you will be billed the additional costs to replace or repair the necessary component pieces.  To avoid such potential charges, please consider purchasing the optional Damage Insurance, explained below.  If you have purchased optional Damage Insurance, you are covered for all incidental damage if the drone, remote & battery (Excludes other accessories and consumable parts).

Rent-To-Own:

Should you enjoy your rental and wish to purchase it, you may purchase the rental for the Rental Unit Sale Price (varies by model & model condition).  Your Daily Rental Rate, within the past 30-Days, may be put towards the purchase of the new model.  Additional fees such as Refundable Deposit, additional Liability Insurance, Damage Insurance, Late Fees or otherwise, are not applicable to the Rent-To-Own savings program.  For example, if you rented a drone for 3-Days, and your 3-Day rental charge was $160 (excluding Refundable Deposit, optional Insurance, etc.), you may apply $160 savings to the purchase of the rental model within 30-Days of your last rental date.  Please contact us directly if you wish to purchase a model after rental.

Damage Insurance:

With optional Damage Insurance, you can fly with peace of mind knowing that you are covered in the event of any damage that could occur during your rental duration.  If you have purchased optional Damage Insurance, you are covered for all incidental damage if the drone, remote, propellers or other accessories is damaged in any way, heavily scratched, dropped, crashed or similar, however you should notify us of any damages upon the time of return.  Please note that consumables such as propellers, SD cards, or other external accessories are EXCLUDED from this damage insurance policy.  If you need to use any of the included extra propellers, or if these additional items are broken, you will be billed the cost of the replacement pieces.  Damage Insurance DOES NOT cover fly-away, loss or theft.

The Damage Insurance covers:

  • Complete aircraft assembly, including gimbal/camera assembly (except propellers, SD card & gimbal clamp)
  • Remote Controller (except control sticks & mobile device cords)
  • Intelligent Flight Battery damage or malfunction

The Damage Insurance DOES NOT cover:

  • Consumables such as propellers
  • Gimbal clamp
  • SD card (if included)
  • Remote controller mobile device cords and control sticks
  • Charger and related cables
  • Retail box OR carrying case (soft, hard or backpack)
  • Any other minor accessories other than the Aircraft, Remote and Intelligent Flight Batteries

Liability Insurance:

All drone rentals come with Basic Liability Insurance.  This insurance is specific to YOU the responsible part renting the drone, and Madison Area Drone Service, the rental equipment provider.

Basic Liability Insurance is as follows:

  • Aviation Liability, Property damage, Bodily injury, Privacy claims up to $1,000,000.  Personal injury coverage up to $25,000.  Medical Expense up to $500.

Commercial Liability Insurance is as follows:

  • Aviation Liability, Property damage, Bodily injury, Privacy claims up to $2,000,000.  Personal injury coverage up to $100,000.  Medical Expense up to $2000. Valid to FAA Part 107 pilots only, with a current & valid certificate.  

Maximum Liability Insurance is as follows:

  • Aviation Liability, Property damage, Bodily injury, Privacy claims up to $5,000,000.  Personal injury coverage up to $100,000.  Medical Expense up to $5000. Valid to FAA Part 107 pilots only, with a current & valid certificate.  

Loss, Theft or Fly-Away:

You are responsible for the equipment for the duration of the rental time.  Damage Insurance and Liability Insurance DOES NOT cover loss, theft or fly-away.  Should loss, theft or fly-away occur, you will be charged the replacement cost of the missing equipment.

Note about “Fly-Away”:  A drone fly-away is an extremely rare occurrence.  While typically viewed as a mistake of the equipment, the true reason for a fly-away is almost always due to user error.  This error may not be known to the pilot at the time of the event.  A fly-away event is most likely to occur if the drone’s compass has not been properly calibrated, or if the drone is being operated in an unsafe environment which is subject to excessive interference, such as near a cell-phone tower, radio station, near power lines or power supply stations, or near geological formations of high magnetic deviation.  Before your first flight, you MUST calibrate the compass sensor properly, outside, away from interference objects such as cars, power lines, radio frequency emitting devices, etc, to ensure reliable flight operation.  In the event that GPS control is lost due to a compass error, the drone is still fully operable by the control sticks.  Return-To-Home function will not work during a compass error or GPS loss.  You are the pilot in control and you must regain control of the aircraft during this unlikely event.  Keep the drone within line of sight and do not rely solely on the flight instrument feedback or FPV camera view for aircraft orientation and navigation.

ID Verification:

In order to initiate your rental, we may need to verify your ID.  If we cannot verify your ID, Madison Area Drone Service reserves the right to cancel a rental without further notification.  If cancelled, your order will be refunded in full.  For a list of valid forms of ID, please visit this link: Valid Forms of ID (WI)

Shipping Address Verification:

Additionally, if the rental will be shipped to your address, we must be able to verify the shipping address is valid and matching to your name.  Please only ship the rental to your home or place of business, in order to confirm delivery security and address confirmation.  If we cannot verify the rental address, Madison Area Drone Service reserves the right to cancel a rental without further notification.  If cancelled, your order will be refunded in full.

Order cancellation:

Madison Area Drone Service reserves the right to cancel any rental order, at any time, for any reason.  If cancelled, your order will be promptly refunded and you will receive a notification email.

 

—Thank you for renting with Madison Area Drone Service!  We will look forward to serving you.—