Even without the decal, Rental Service's equipment is protected, said David Shillingford, president of NER in New York. "If the decal is removed, the unit is still registered on the database and can be identified in a number of ways," he said.

Mr. Shillingford told National Underwriter that it is more difficult for a renter, the insured, to add customized theft prevention devices to equipment that is rented. Insureds also are less likely to have serious business interruption from a stolen rental piece rather than one that is owned, and therefore "may take fewer security precautions in general" with rented equipment, he said.

He added that there are also more theft discovery and reporting issues for rental equipment.

Some insurers report that most of their equipment theft losses are rental items and this is likely to increase as the use of rental equipment grows," he noted.

"It is very difficult to put a dollar value on the benefit to insurers at this stage, but I can say that by bringing the rental industry on board we will double the size of our database of stolen equipment and take our ownership records over the 10 million mark. I would expect our recovery rate to double?and most of these recoveries will be for insurers," said Mr. Shillingford.

With Rental Service's equipment fleet now added to NER's databases, NER said it will be able to identify equipment belonging to Rental Service?even before a theft is reported.

NER said it provides expert advice through a 24-hour hotline as well as theft and ownership information to law enforcement agencies seeking to identify suspicious construction and farm equipment. NER also coordinates a national training program that alerts police officers to the common 'red flags' to watch for when investigating suspicious equipment.

Priscilla Oehlert, Rental Service's director of risk, safety and environmental, said theft is a significant concern for all rental companies and their clients. "This is the right thing to do because it will positively impact our clients and the industry as a whole," she said. "The more fleets that register equipment, the more officers will use NER and the harder it will be for thieves to steal."

NER said it has worked with more than 370 U.S. insurance companies, law enforcement and equipment owners to build databases of about 40,000 detailed equipment theft reports and 10 million ownership records.

More than 2,000 law enforcement agencies use NER's databases regularly, resulting in the recovery of more than $3 million of stolen equipment, according to NER.

More information is available by calling 212-297-1805 or online at www.NERusa.com.