04 May 21 - Things You Should Look Out For When Hiring a Bouncy Castle or Other Inflatable

Things that you should look out for when hiring a bouncy castle or other play inflatable:

1. Bouncy Castles and other play inflatables must be tested annually by a suitably qualified tester/competent person to make sure that the bouncy castle or inflatable complies with the European standard EN 14960: 2013. The most common inspectors are PIPA or ADIPS inspectors and they can test the bouncy castle, in a similar way that a car will have an MOT test once a year. When the bouncy castle passes its test, it will be issued with an "MOT" certificate, and the customer is entitled to see a copy of this certificate. Some venues may ask to see these test certificates in advance of the event or on the day itself. Bounce & Party are more than happy to provide these, in fact they are available to view directly on our website on the bouncy castles product page.
2. Does the bouncy castle company have adequate public liability insurance of at least £1 million (preferably £5 million). It's important to point out that this insurance would probably be null and void if the same bouncy castle / inflatable does not have a valid test certificate. All of Bounce & Party's bouncy castles and inflatables are tested yearly and have a PIPA tag. We also have £5 million public liability insurance.
3. Are all the electrical items PAT tested? All electrical items used to power the inflatable e.g. blowers and extension leads must have a valid and current PAT certificate (Portable Appliance Test) in accordance with health and safety regulations from the HSE. PAT certificates may be requested by the venue before the event starts or on the day of the event. You should also make sure that your inflatable hire provider provides RCD's to alleviate the risk of electric shocks.
4. Can your Bouncy Castle Provider give you a risk assessment and/or a method statement. Many venues request a risk assessment and or a method statement from the hire company before the equipment can be set up although sometimes this may be asked on arrival. But Bounce & Party prefer it if it's requested beforehand as we are often extremely busy on the day of the hire. When booking a bouncy castle or other inflatable it's your right and your prerogative to request to view the items mentioned above, but it would greatly help us if you gave us as much notice as possible, as on the day of the event or party, we are usually extremely busy. We do have a risk assessment available to download on our website and this should suffice in most situations.
5. Will your bouncy castle hire company put safety before profits and cancel the booking if the forecasted wind speed (including gusts) exceeds 24mph? It's against the law to use a bouncy castle in wind stronger than 24 mph and if ignored could be put children's safety at risk.
6. Has the bouncy castle provider attended an RPII Safe Operators and Attendants Course and passed? Bounce & Party certainly have and we would be more than happy to provide prove of this.
7. Although not as important as the 6 points mentioned above, it's also a very good idea for consumers to look at Reviews and Testimonials of the company they are choosing to hire from, as this will give you a "gut feeling" as to the overall professionalism of the company. In addition, the manner in which the hire company responds to reviews, both positive and negative reviews is a useful indicator as to how professional that company is. Their response to reviews will give you an overall "gut feeling" as to the integrity and professionalism of the company that you are thinking of choosing. Please note that our hire company adheres to all the above points very carefully and competently. Please call us on 07949837154 if you have any more questions or queries thank you for reading.