Self Storage Insurance
To insure or not to insure, that is the question… Ultimately you need to ask yourself whether you’re prepared to lose what you’ve put into storage. If the answer is “no” then you need to consider some sort of insurance.
What are the risks?
The risks involved in leaving your possessions in storage are pretty much the same as at home. As well as the obvious ones like fire or theft, you also need to consider the less obvious such as flooding or accidental damage. The floods experienced in the UK in Summer 2007 reached places that were previously considered low risk for flooding. Accidental damage can range from you dropping something to a large tree falling on your storage unit in strong winds! We are not being doom and gloom, we’re just trying to tell you to expect the unexpected.
Are you already covered?
You may already have self storage insurance included as part of your home contents insurance policy - but it’s unlikely, especially if you are planning on using the storage long term. Always check the terms and conditions though as there are likely to be exclusions for certain items.
Some storage companies offer insurance as part of their pricing but in such cases the cover offered may be quite limited. Again, check the terms and conditions - understand what the cover does and does not include.
Comparing storage insurance policies
Insurance is insurance right? Wrong - remember that, with car insurance, there’s many types of policy and many types of add-ons: fully comprehensive, 3rd party, guaranteed car hire, no claims protection, etc. When comparing storage insurance policies, the key things to look out for are:
- Replacement - if the worst happens, will your items be replaced on a new-for-old basis or something else? Will you have the option of money instead of goods? What happens to “irreplaceable” items like old records or old furniture?
- Exclusions - understand what is not included. Some policies exclude cash, watches or antiques.
- Amount of cover - make sure you’ve got adequate cover, there’s no point insuring for £1,000 if all your stuff is worth £10,000. Indeed, in this case you may find that your £1,000 policy is invalid if you’ve got items worth significantly more than that in storage.
- Transport - check whether your items are covered in transit, either to or from the storage.
- Unusual or high value items - some policies may place limits on the high value items (eg electrical goods or antiques).
- Type of cover - as already mentioned, understand what is covered here. Think about things other than simple fire or theft.
Where to obtain cover?
The insurance market has reacted well to the boom in self storage over the last few years and there’s many places where you could get cover for your possessions/valuables while they are in storage. Good sources of insurance include:
- Your home contents insurer - even though self storage isn’t covered by default in most policies, your insurer may offer cover for a small premium. Your best bet is to telephone them and ask as it’s not usually the sort of thing that they will mention in the policy documentation or even on their website.
- The storage company - most self storage businesses will offer their customers insurance cover. In some cases it may even be free (ie included in the storage cost). Most often though, it is offered on a monthly basis per thousand pounds of cover required. Remember though that the storage company probably makes a margin on providing you with insurance - which means that you may be able to get it cheaper direct or that there may be some scope for negotiation with the storage company.
- Specialist internet storage insurance companies - insurance is often cheaper on the internet because you can get cover without speaking to a human being. There are a number of internet based self storage insurers so it’s worth checking these out.
As with any insurance policy, always get at least two quotes and make sure you understand the cover that you’re getting, especially if going for a very cheap policy.