The signature audit trail
A signature on a screen is only as good as the proof behind it. When a renter signs, Fleetola keeps that proof on the contract - who signed, when, from where and on what device - and holds it for the dispute you hope never comes.
Is an e-signature binding?
The declaration printed directly above every signature records the renter's consent to sign electronically, and names the Electronic Transactions Act 1999 (Cth) - the Act that gives an electronic signature the same legal effect as a handwritten one where the signer is identified, intends to be bound and consents. Fleetola captures and retains the evidence that supports each of those. Nothing in Fleetola is legal advice - if a contract matters enough to fight over, hand your lawyer the audit trail.
What is captured when a renter signs
Five things, stored on the contract: the signature image, the exact time, the IP address it was signed from, the browser and device, and a signature ID - the SHA-256 fingerprint of the signature image, which changes if so much as a pixel does. Your terms are frozen and fingerprinted at the same moment - see Your rental terms - and the signed agreement PDF is stored as it was and served back byte for byte.
See the evidence
- Open the contract from Contracts. On a signed contract, the Agreement section shows Signed by and the date.
- Click the green shield row - Signature & audit trail.
- The signature, the captured evidence and the full event log are all there.
- Download audit trail saves the whole record as its own PDF - the document you hand an insurer, a bank or a court.
Where to find it: Contracts → open the contract → Signature & audit trail
The same record is listed on the contract's Documents tab, beside the signed agreement, with a View and a PDF button of its own.
The event log
The log is append-only: nothing in it can be edited or removed. Signing writes the first event, and more are added as things happen - a re-sign, a recapture, a cleared signature, an edit to a signed contract's terms or money, and the automatic status changes as the rental starts and finishes. Every event carries its own time, and events a person performed carry the IP address and device they came from - so the record shows not just what was signed but everything that has happened to it since.
No signature image? Recapture it
An unclear or wrongly drawn signature can be replaced: Recapture signature in the audit-trail window has the renter sign again on your screen. The new signature replaces the stored one and refreshes the evidence, and the trail records it as its own recaptured event, carrying the old signature's ID - a replaced signature is never silent.
Licence and passport
The renter's driver licence and passport scans live on the same Documents tab, alongside the signed agreement and any extra forms signed with it. The licence row shows its expiry and says plainly when there is no photo on file. One tab holds everything a dispute needs.
Tip: Deleting an ended contract deletes its evidence with it - signature, hashes and event log. Download the signed PDF and the audit trail first if a dispute is still possible.
Related guides
- Send a contract for signing - Write an agreement and have the renter sign it on their phone.
- Charges and add-ons - Name a charge once in Settings, then price it on each contract.
- Your rental terms - Paste your terms once, and choose whether the agreement links to them or prints them.
- Pick-up and return locations - Set up the depots renters collect from and bring the car back to.