Self-storage customers may be overpaying up to £2,000 a year on insurance, broker finds
Surewise research shows some contents policies sold through storage firms cost up to nine times more than comparable cover elsewhere
Self-storage customers are paying as much as nine times more for contents insurance than comparable policies elsewhere and could spend up to £2,000 extra a year by taking cover offered by storage firms, new research by insurance broker Surewise has found.
Surewise compared quotes for short-term policies and found some deals promoted by self-storage companies carry markedly higher premiums than similar cover available from other insurers. In one example cited by the broker, a customer was quoted £108 for six months of cover for goods worth £1,000 by a storage provider, while similar cover could be bought for £11 from alternative insurers for the same period.
The broker also highlighted a London example in which a self-storage firm quoted £1,159 to insure £27,000 of goods for six months, the equivalent of about £193 a month. Surewise said customers could find six-month cover for the same declared value for around £146 through other providers. Across a 12-month period, such disparities can add up to roughly £2,000 in unnecessary premiums, the research concluded.
The surge in demand for storage space has coincided with the growth of insurance add-ons. Since 2020 the number of self-storage sites in the UK has risen about 16 percent to roughly 2,200 locations, according to sector data cited in the research. Contents insurance is not usually included in a rental contract; storage firms often promote insurance as a separate optional product at the point of rental.
Experts and consumer advocates cited by the broker said the market for storage insurance is uneven and that customers can be left paying several hundred pounds a year more than necessary. The price differences identified by Surewise reflect a combination of provider pricing strategies and the variety of policy terms offered, including differences in cover limits, excesses and exclusions.
Surewise is an intermediary that compared publicly available quotes from storage companies and mainstream insurers. The broker’s analysis focused on short-duration products commonly purchased when customers rent a unit for months rather than years. It found that in some cases storage operators’ insurance offerings carried substantial mark-ups relative to competitively priced standalone policies.
Industry observers note that while some storage firms partner with reputable insurers to provide appropriate cover tailored to contents kept in units, not all policies are equivalent. Consumers who accept insurance at the point of rental may not always compare policy limits, exclusions for particular types of loss, or excess levels with comparable market alternatives.
The findings come amid sustained interest in storage space driven by factors such as housing churn, urban downsizing and increased online retail activity that has pushed more households and businesses to rent units for short- to medium-term needs. As the market has expanded, the sale of ancillary services, including insurance, has become an additional revenue stream for operators.
Surewise’s research underscores the variation in pricing and policy design in the storage-insurance market. Consumer groups and brokers recommend that renters obtain written details of any insurance offered, check what is actually covered, compare premiums and terms from multiple insurers, and confirm whether declared values and replacement costs are adequate for their goods. Those considerations will determine whether buying cover through a storage provider is the most cost-effective and appropriate option.