Comparison
Rollout vs Coates Hire: Peer-to-Peer vs Traditional Equipment Hire
Comparing Rollout and Coates Hire for civil construction equipment in Australia — pricing, availability, booking process, and why peer-to-peer dry hire is changing the industry.
5 min read · 1 September 2025
Rollout vs Coates Hire: Peer-to-Peer vs Traditional Equipment Hire
Coates Hire is one of Australia's largest equipment hire companies — thousands of machines, depots in every state, a household name in the industry. Rollout is a peer-to-peer marketplace where private owners list their plant for dry hire.
These are fundamentally different models. Here's what that means for you as a hirer.
What is Coates Hire?
Coates Hire is a traditional hire company. They own and maintain a large fleet of equipment across a national depot network. When you hire from Coates, you're hiring from the company — not from an individual owner. They cover general construction, industrial, and some civil plant. Booking is through their website, depots, or account management teams.
What is Rollout?
Rollout is a peer-to-peer marketplace for civil construction and earthmoving equipment — dry hire only. Individual owners list their machines with upfront daily and weekly rates. Hirers browse, select, and book directly with the owner through the platform. Payments are handled securely through Stripe and held until the hire commences.
Side-by-side comparison
| Rollout | Coates Hire | |
|---|---|---|
| Who owns the equipment | Private owners | Coates Hire |
| Hire type | Dry hire only | Dry hire (general and some civil plant) |
| Pricing | Upfront on every listing | Quoted on enquiry or via account |
| Account required | No — book immediately | Credit account or upfront payment |
| Payment protection | Stripe — held until hire commences | Standard hire company terms |
| Float transport | Integrated at booking | Arrange independently or via Coates |
| Machine condition | Owner-maintained, operator-level care | Fleet-maintained to minimum standards |
| Civil plant focus | Excavators, dozers, graders, ADTs, rollers | Limited civil plant — more general hire |
| Flexibility | Owner sets terms — often more flexible | Standard terms, minimum hire periods |
| Pricing model | Owner-set market rates | Depot pricing with overhead built in |
The depot model vs the marketplace model
Coates operates depots. Those depots have rent, staff, fleet management costs, and a national corporate structure to support. That overhead is built into their rates. When you hire a machine from Coates, part of what you're paying for is the depot down the road, the account manager, and the national marketing budget.
On Rollout, you're hiring from someone who bought that machine to use it and is making it available when it's not on their own jobs. No depot, no corporate overhead. The rate reflects what the owner wants to earn, not what it costs to run a national hire business.
Machine condition and care
This is where peer-to-peer hire has a real edge for civil plant.
A machine on Rollout is typically owned and operated by a civil contractor or plant owner who depends on it for their own work. It's serviced on time because downtime on their own jobs is expensive. It's maintained to a standard that reflects the owner's pride in their equipment.
A machine in a large hire fleet gets serviced to schedule, but it's handled by dozens of different operators, returned in varying states, and repaired to minimum acceptable standards. For specialised civil plant — a dozer, a grader, a large excavator — the difference in condition and performance can be significant.
Civil plant availability
Coates Hire's strength is general construction and industrial equipment. For civil earthmoving — large excavators, dozers, motor graders, articulated dump trucks, posi tracks — their fleet is more limited and availability at any given depot can be patchy.
Rollout lists privately owned civil plant from operators across Australia. You're more likely to find a specific machine type, size, and location on Rollout than you are to find it available at a Coates depot near your site.
Account setup and terms
Hiring from Coates typically requires a credit account or upfront card payment. For new customers, establishing credit terms takes time — not ideal if you need a machine next week.
Rollout requires no account setup beyond creating a profile. Find a machine, enter your card details, submit a request. If the owner accepts, you're booked.
Who Coates Hire suits
- Projects needing general construction equipment (scissor lifts, compressors, general hand tools)
- Companies with existing Coates accounts and established terms
- Situations where a national company's compliance and paperwork trail is required
- Hirers in locations where no Rollout listings are available nearby
Who Rollout suits
- Civil contractors needing dry hire earthmoving plant
- Hirers who want upfront pricing without account applications
- Projects where machine condition and operator-level maintenance matters
- Anyone who wants payment held securely until the machine arrives on site
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Rollout and Coates Hire?
Coates Hire is a traditional equipment hire company with a national depot network — you hire from Coates, not from individual owners. Rollout is a peer-to-peer marketplace where you hire directly from the equipment owner, typically at lower rates with more flexible terms and transparent upfront pricing.
Is Rollout cheaper than Coates Hire?
In most cases, yes. Peer-to-peer hire on Rollout cuts out the depot overhead — owners set their own rates based on what the market will bear, not on covering a national branch network. For civil construction plant, Rollout rates are typically more competitive than traditional hire company pricing.
Does Coates Hire offer dry hire for excavators and dozers?
Coates Hire's civil plant fleet is more limited than their general hire range. For specialised civil construction plant — large excavators, dozers, graders, ADTs — availability at any given depot can be limited. Rollout lists privately owned machines from operators across Australia, often including newer and better-maintained civil plant than what's available at a traditional hire depot.
Can I hire civil construction equipment without a depot account?
Yes. Rollout requires no account setup, credit application, or trading terms. Sign up, find a machine, and submit a hire request. Coates Hire typically requires a credit account or upfront payment, with terms that can take time to establish for new customers.
What are the advantages of hiring from an owner instead of a hire company?
When you hire from an owner on Rollout, you're dealing with someone who operates and maintains that specific machine. They know its quirks, its service history, and its actual condition. Traditional hire companies manage large fleets — individual machines may be older, higher-hours, and maintained to minimum acceptable standards rather than operator-level care.