How to Get Equipment Back from a Terminated Employee

Equally important as getting company equipment like laptops, tablets, and smartphones into the hands of employees when first starting with your company is getting it back after termination. 

As part of offboarding, you need an efficient, streamlined process of retrieving company property from a terminated employee, especially if it’s been remote work. 

With that said, here’s how to get equipment back from a terminated employee in five simple steps. 

1. Document Requirements in Writing

First, you’ll want to create a formal policy outlining the equipment return process so you’re on the same page with employees. Whether you’re dealing with in-house workers, remote workers, or those on a probationary period, this should set the right expectations right from the start. 

A policy should clearly state that it’s an employee’s responsibility to return company property, and there should be a specific timeframe (e.g. 7 days) in which they have to do so after leaving.  

You should have each new employee read the offboarding process requirements in an employee handbook when they start working at your company and sign an agreement on the employment contract.

Having this in writing is critical as it holds a terminated employee accountable for returning equipment, and there should be no confusion to minimize the potential for issues after termination. 

Given that one study found that “71% of HR workers say at least one employee didn’t return company-owned equipment,” this can spare you a lot of stress later on.

2. Clearly Communicate the Process to the Terminated Employee

Shortly before a departing employee leaves, you’ll want to refresh their memory about the agreement on returning company assets and give them a full overview of how to navigate the return process after termination. 

A simple way to do this is by creating a checklist of what to do, along with step-by-step instructions for the following:

• When to return employee equipment
• Where to return it
• How to return it
• Who to reach out to if they have any questions
• Consequences for not returning company equipment on time (e.g loss of a portion of final earnings)

Then, during the exit interview or via email, communicate the process as a reminder and send them the checklist to ensure everything is handled correctly. 

Be sure to include a concrete deadline for when work equipment is due and ask that a terminated employee contact the appropriate team member if any issues arise.

3. Send Them a Box with a Prepaid Return Label

When dealing with someone like an in-house federal employee or probationary employee, gathering company equipment is pretty straightforward. But when it comes to a remote employee, you’ll need someone within your company to handle the equipment return logistics. 

One of the best ways to avoid friction and ensure company equipment is returned promptly is to initiate the process by sending a box with a prepaid return label. 

This makes it far more convenient for a remote employee and prevents a lot of hassle on their end when returning office equipment. In turn, they can get everything they need and send it back without any guesswork. 

They simply pack the box, attach the prepaid return label, and ship it out. 

Just note that you’ll want to make sure that you have a clear structure in place for who’s responsible for handling this. For example, it may be your IT department’s job to send out the box and return label and have your HR professionals handle all employee communications. 

This brings us to our next point. 

4. Follow Up

Ideally, you would reach out to affected employees, send them their box and return label, and they would instantly complete the equipment return process. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always go that smoothly, and it may take multiple reminders to secure employee equipment. 

That’s why you should have a follow-up sequence baked into the process. For instance, if you don’t hear back from an employee within 24 hours of the initial communication, you could send a follow-up email or make a phone call. 

You could even create an automated email workflow where a series of reminders are sent at scheduled intervals so you don’t have to do it manually. 

If someone is unresponsive and doesn’t communicate with company representatives, you’ll likely want to send a formal written reminder. 

And if that doesn’t work, it may be time to pursue legal action for unreturned property. To see what type of legal action can be taken, look for legal advice by researching local labor laws in your area. 

Just note that pursuing legal action can be costly and time-consuming. Therefore, it often makes more sense to take the following action instead when dealing with missing equipment. 

5. Deduct Employee Pay

If you don’t want to go through the trouble of pursuing legal action, another option is to deduct the cost of the company equipment from the employee’s final paycheck. 

This compensation could come through taking a portion of paid leave, vacation pay, or anything else to help you recoup your loss. 

While not always ideal, many companies find the deduction of wages to be an easier solution. You’ll likely need to purchase new equipment to replace unreturned equipment, but at least you won’t have to take a financial hit by going this route. 

However, before deducting employee pay, you need to be sure that it’s allowed under local law. Some states allow employers to use this method if equipment isn’t returned on time. But not all do. 

You can find more labor law information regarding final pay deduction from all 50 states, along with contact information, in this resource. There, you can learn more about an unpaid wage for violating company equipment return from a variety of positions, such as:

• Customer service
• Remote work
• Human services
• Minimum wage workers
• Probationary workers
• Environmental Protection Agency EPA employees
• Federal worker positions
• Department of Government Efficiency workers
• Internal Revenue Service employees
• Those part of the National Treasury Employees Union

Consider Using an Equipment Retrieval Service

Up until this point, all of the recommended steps of IT asset management have involved your business reclaiming company property from a terminated employee. 

This can be a good option for many businesses, especially if you have adequate personnel management to handle the process and understand the nuances of final pay deduction in accordance with rules like the Fair Labor Standards Act. 

But if you lack the manpower or simply don’t want to deal with the logistics and back-and-forthing required with reclaiming employee equipment, you can always outsource it by using an equipment retrieval service. 

With this approach, a third party will handle most or all of the process for you. 

For example, allwhere offers an employee laptop retrieval service that makes it fast and easy, while covering logistics end-to-end. 

Everything an employee needs to return their laptop is included in a box. There are packing materials, instructions, and a prepaid return label. All they have to do is put in their laptop and accessories and ship the box. 

allwhere provides real-time tracking and updates every step of the way from the moment an employee laptop is sent out to the moment it’s delivered. We even handle communication and can send reminders to a remote employee if they fail to respond initially. 

You can use a one-time retrieval kit. Or if you need ongoing retrievals, there are bulk options, which work well for larger companies with over 100 employees. 

In most cases, US-based businesses will see a retrieval time of less than a week. But if you need it quicker, we can provide you with a custom quote. 

Learn more about our equipment retrieval service and get the full details here. 

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