Bouncy castle hire and bad weather: rules and cancellations

When you want to hire out a bouncy castle in bad weather in the Netherlands, the safety standard NEN-EN 14960 determines that an inflatable attraction may not be used in winds of more than 38 km/h, the upper limit of wind force 5. As the rental business you prevent arguments about money by laying down in your general terms and conditions in advance until when a customer may rebook free of charge in a storm or persistent rain. With a clear bad-weather guarantee you give the customer the option of choosing a new date up to the morning of handover, while you protect your own turnover by converting down payments into a credit voucher.

In short: If the wind is stronger than 38 km/h (the upper limit of wind force 5), a bouncy castle may not be used under NEN-EN 14960 and must be deflated. Work with a bad-weather guarantee under which customers choose a replacement date free of charge, in rain or storm, until 07:00 on the day of hire. That way you prevent dangerous situations and payouts that hollow out your margin.

A bad-weather guarantee in bouncy castle hire is a specific cancellation arrangement that lets a hirer move the booking to a later date free of charge in demonstrably bad weather conditions, such as a storm or prolonged rainfall.

Bad weather and cancellations: what applies when?

In the day-to-day rental of party supplies and inflatable attractions, the weather forecast causes discussion every week. Parents organising a children's party panic at three spots of rain and want their money back, while clubs sometimes carry on too long in gusts of wind. The table below gives a direct overview of the policy for each weather situation.

Why the NEN-EN 14960 standard decides in wind and storms

As the rental business you are responsible for the equipment you put out on the street. Under the Dutch Decree on Attractions and Playground Equipment (Besluit attractie- en speeltoestellen), inflatable play equipment must comply with the European standard NEN-EN 14960. This standard states that a bouncy castle may never be used outdoors at a wind speed of more than 38 kilometres per hour, the upper limit of wind force 5 on the Beaufort scale.

At wind force 5, thick branches start to move and umbrellas are held on to with difficulty. At that point an inflatable castle catches so much wind that the anchor points can tear loose, resulting in life-threatening situations. The standard also requires every bouncy castle to be secured with at least six anchor points, where each peg or sandbag must be able to withstand a pulling force of 1600 Newton (about 160 kilos).

Should a bouncy castle blow loose and cause injury, the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) will look at your instructions and anchoring. For more information about liability, see our article on safety and terms in rental.

The bad-weather protocol for the morning of handover

To avoid chaos on the phone at seven o'clock on a Saturday morning, you use a fixed protocol. Print this list and apply it strictly whenever the weather forecast is doubtful.

• Shower and wind check (06:30): Check the current wind force and gusts at the hirer's location via the KNMI (the Dutch national weather service) or Buienradar. Is the forecast gust higher than 38 km/h? Then the castle does not go out.
• Active customer contact (07:00): Call or message the customer in persistent rain. Ask whether the party is going ahead under cover or whether they want to use the bad-weather guarantee.
• Rebooking to a new date: Move the booking in your system to a dummy date, or create a credit voucher straight away that stays valid for 12 months.
• Anchoring check at handover: With every collection, hand over the right pegs (at least 38 cm long) or sandbags for hard ground, including a hammer.
• Instruction to pack away dry: Instruct the customer that a wet castle must not stay rolled up for hours in a closed bag, to prevent mould.

The bad-weather guarantee: credit voucher or money back?

One of the biggest pitfalls for rental businesses that are just starting out is promising "money back if it rains". If it rains three weekends in a row in May and you have to pay back all the down payments, you immediately get into trouble with your fixed costs and storage costs.

A healthy bad-weather guarantee offers the customer flexibility, but protects your cash flow. Give the customer the option of moving to another date within 12 months free of charge until 07:00 on the day of hire. Is no castle free on the new date? Then the credit stays in place. Only when you, as the rental business, decide that delivery cannot go ahead for safety reasons (such as a storm warning) and there is no alternative do you proceed to a refund.

What do you do about water damage and bouncy castles returned wet?

When a castle has stood in the rain and is rolled up wet, mildew (known in Dutch as "het weer") develops in the fabric within 24 to 48 hours. These are black patches of mould that you can hardly get out again and that attack the material.

Include in your terms that the hirer must leave the bouncy castle inflated during a shower. The overpressure ensures that the water does not soak deep into the seams and the interior. Does the castle stay wet for a long time and is it handed in soaked? Then you charge drying costs. The time you spend inflating the castle in your warehouse and wiping it down with a drying cloth costs money. Link this directly to how you settle the deposit, as described in our article on deposits and damage in rental.

When a lenient cancellation policy does not work

A lenient bad-weather guarantee works very well for standard bouncy castles that customers collect themselves with a trailer. There are situations, however, in which you cannot allow free cancellation on the morning itself.

Do you hire out large inflatable obstacle courses or heavy attractions including set-up and take-down by your own staff? Then you are dealing with staff costs and transport planning. If your van with the set-up crew is ready to leave at 08:00, you can no longer absorb a free cancellation at 07:55. For attractions that you set up and for events you therefore apply a stricter cancellation scale, under which cancelling within 24 hours before delivery always costs a fixed percentage (for example 50% of the rental fee) to cover the wage costs incurred.

How to start this week

Set up your cancellation and weather policy professionally this week with the steps below.

1. Include the limit of 38 km/h (the upper limit of wind force 5) explicitly in your safety instructions and general terms and conditions.
2. Adjust your bad-weather guarantee: moving the booking is free until 07:00 on the day of hire, but a refund is only given if the rental business cancels.
3. Set a fixed drying fee (for example € 35) for castles that are handed in soaked and uncared for.
4. Make sure you hand over enough approved pegs or sandbags with every handover.
5. In Bookedin you use add custom fields to ask for agreement to your weather and safety terms directly at the time of booking, so the agreement is fixed in your system.

A clear policy on bad weather brings calm to the phone on rainy days. You know exactly where you stand, the children's safety is safeguarded and your business stays financially healthy, whatever the weather gods do.

Last checked on 8 October 2026.