ASK & DISCUSS
INDEXMisuse of someone else's gear
9 years ago - Matteo di Cugno
I wonder if anyone has had experience of gear getting broken or poked or moved not carefully on set and how did you deal with the situation.
Someone laid a big manfrotto stand few inches from my sound gear at my last shoot and I am now wondering what would have happened if something got smashed...
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9 years ago - Paddy Robinson-Griffin
This is what insurance is for. The production may or may not have some, but you should certainly have your own, just in case and as backup. You should also chat to either the Muppet who dumped a tripod on your desk, or if you're not sure who it was, the DoP as head of department, remind them that other people have expensive kit, too. And when something isn't in use, keep it in a peli or flight case.
9 years ago - Matteo di Cugno
Thank you Paddy, my insurance covers for gear stolen but not damaged, about keeping the gear in a peli, good idea! But sometime you need to have access to it quickly, but I'll try to keep it safe from now on and ask if there is an insurance beforehand.
Thank you!
9 years ago - Alève Mine
So it should be the insurance of the people using the gear that covers for that right? It seems a bit harsh to ask for a proof of insurance every time you lend your gear, though. Also, what if one person borrows it from you and another crew member damages it?
9 years ago - Paddy Robinson-Griffin
@Alève Mine - If someone damages your kit, they should pay to fix it. If they don't have insurance, it's going to be expensive for them. Most hire companies will insist on your having a suitable policy before letting the kit off site - part of their terms and conditions of business.
9 years ago - Alève Mine
@Paddy Robinson-Griffin thanks.
9 years ago - Dan Selakovich
@Alève Mine Because of shit like this, I don't loan out my gear any longer at all except to people that have insurance. I tell them where they can get it and how much it will cost. The price is pretty low for a few days shoot--certainly less than the rental would be. So far, I haven't had any problems with people being defensive about it.
9 years ago - Alève Mine
@Dan Selakovich thank you.
9 years ago - Dan Selakovich
You've got to speak up. Don't be a dick about it, but you have to say something. What if it's your head that gets smashed and not your gear? If there's a 10k right next to you, it's best if you talk to the AD or DP about moving to a different spot.
Film students are the absolute worst with gear and set safety. A friend of mine worked at a grip rental house, and he hated student shoots, or shoots with a lot of inexperienced people. The equipment always came back in disarray or even broken. By comparison, on union shows, the equipment came back better than it went out.
9 years ago - Matteo di Cugno
Thanks!
9 years ago - Paddy Robinson-Griffin
You could ask the UPM to nominate space for each department, too, if you're on site for a while. Bit of gaffer/masking/spike tape on the floor so it's clear who is transgressing ;-)
9 years ago - Marlom Tander
If you lend kit, get the producer to sign that they are taking on the liability of ensuring it's safe return.
If you don't entirely trust them, get them to give you a surety. Concentrates the mind most wonderfully.
9 years ago - Matteo di Cugno
Thanks you guys for all your replies! My concern is not for equipment dry hired but for equipment damaged with me on set.
Is there any insurance I can suggest to producers and under which name does it go?
9 years ago - Dan Selakovich
Ask if they have "production insurance" and that every piece of equipment you bring to set is listed under that policy. I'm in the U.S., so I'm sure Paddy can answer this much more completely for the U.K.
9 years ago - Dan Selakovich
P.S. If they have rented any equipment, they WILL have production insurance already. I don't know of any lighting/grip house that will let you take even an apple box without production insurance.
9 years ago - Matteo di Cugno
@Dan Selakovich
Thanks! I am gonna ask everytime from now on ;)
9 years ago - David Graham Scott
My friend, nothing happened so there's nothing to talk about. What if a jet aircraft came smashing into your house? What if a kid decapitated you with a frisbee? There are many such scenarios.
Sleep well as nothing happened.
9 years ago - Dan Selakovich
He asked a "what if" question, and found that he is not properly covered. Because of everyone's answers, he knows what he needs to do on his next shoot. He wasn't asking about his psychological well being, but the well being of his livelihood (his equipment).
9 years ago - Matteo di Cugno
@Dan Selakovich
Lol
9 years ago - John Lubran
Taking care of kit has always been a top priority for us at Moving Vision. We're just not rich enough to be in the least blase'about it. Probably 85% of the time we'll be using our own hard earned equipment and it'll not only be about protecting our assets but when in the middle of a production, particularly in a remote location, we can't tolerate any ham fisted crew. We once had a brilliant multi skilled person on our team who we were not entirely sad to part with after wrecking three cameras and quite a bit of other stuff in entirely unnecessary circumstances, and on one occasion in remote Alaska after destroying both main and back up camera the cost of that production escalated horribly. Having said that, accidents and acts of God are going to happen at some point with a busy production company majoring in challenging locations. Insurance is a no brainer.