Critical equipment has broken down. Get it running again

Why is a breakdown more expensive than the repair bill?

When the commercial oven fails in a bakery, the walk-in cool room dies in a restaurant, the CNC machine stops in a workshop or the compressor goes in a cold-storage depot, the repair bill is only part of the cost. The bigger number is often what you lose while you wait: jobs cancelled, stock spoiled, staff paid to stand around, customers who go elsewhere and don’t come back.

That’s why breakdowns feel like emergencies even when the repair itself is affordable. Every day matters. The goal of triage is to shorten the downtime, not just to pay the invoice.

What should I do in the first hour?

1. Make the site safe. Isolate power, protect staff and stop any damage spreading — leaks, spoilage, heat.
2. Get a diagnosis and a written quote that states the repair cost, parts availability and how long until you’re running. Ask for a second quote if the first one is vague.
3. Calculate the daily cost of downtime. Lost revenue, spoiled stock, wages for idle staff, hire of a temporary replacement.
4. Check insurance. Look at your policy schedule for machinery breakdown, equipment breakdown or business interruption cover. Lodge the claim now, even if you fund the repair yourself.
5. Ask the repairer about payment. Will they start on a deposit? Will they accept payment directly from a lender?

With a quote and a downtime figure, you can see clearly whether to repair, replace or hire, and how much you need. The emergency triage tool turns that into a document checklist.

Repair, replace or hire?

Option	When it makes sense	Typical funding
Repair now	Machine has life left, parts available in days	Unsecured cash-flow loan; same day possible for smaller amounts
Replace now	Repair uneconomic or parts unavailable	Property-secured loan; $20k to $250k possible same day
Hire, then decide	Need to keep trading while you weigh options	Small unsecured loan or line of credit for hire costs
Repair now, replace later	Bridge to a planned upgrade	Short-term loan now, equipment finance later

For small to mid-sized repair bills, a short-term unsecured emergency loan sized on turnover is often the quickest path. For major replacements, equipment repair finance explains how secured and unsecured options compare.

Illustrative example: a bakery oven fails before the weekend

Illustrative only. A wholesale bakery in Adelaide supplies cafes six days a week. On Thursday, its main deck oven fails. The technician quotes $38,000 for a replacement control system and burner, with parts available Friday morning if paid for today. Each day without the oven costs about $9,000 in lost wholesale orders.

The bakery has 18 months of strong bank statements but no property. An unsecured business loan of $45,000 — covering the repair, an extra service and a small buffer — is possible within the day once statements and ID are in. The repairer is paid directly. The oven is back on Saturday morning, and the loan is repaid over a few months from normal trading. The insurance claim, lodged on Thursday, later recovers part of the cost.

What lenders look for in a breakdown loan

Breakdowns are simple stories for lenders, which helps. They want to see:

• The quote — what’s being fixed or bought and by whom.
• That the business trades — recent bank statements, usually three to six months.
• That the repair restores income — the link between fixing the machine and getting revenue back.
• ID and ABN/ACN, plus property details if you’re offering security.

Past credit issues are considered case by case. A breakdown loan has a natural exit: the business goes back to earning, and the loan is repaid from that income.

How do I avoid the next breakdown emergency?

A few habits cut the risk. Keep a list of your critical assets with service dates and the phone number of a technician who can attend at short notice. Know your insurance — what’s covered, the excess and how claims work. Hold a small buffer or a standing line of credit for exactly this kind of event. And if a machine is near the end of its life, plan the replacement on your timetable instead of the machine’s.

If the breakdown is a vehicle rather than plant, read when a truck or van is off the road.

Get back to work faster

The quickest repairs are the ones where the money is ready before the parts arrive. Start a 60-second enquiry as soon as you have the quote.

There’s no credit check when you first enquire, and we don’t pass your details around a crowd of lenders. A real person reads your situation, calls you back and works on one route. Tell us the repair amount, how long you’ll be down and whether you own property — accurate answers mean the right offer arrives first. Find out what you qualify for.