Frequently asked questions

Just like living in an apartment where the building insurance is usually provided by a third party, you still need to have contents insurance when you live there. Self storage works the same way. Our insurance covers our building; the contents protection through our Enhanced Liability Service provides protection for your goods.

If you take out our contents protection through our Enhanced Liability Service, we will protect your goods against the following normal perils: Actual physical loss or damage to Goods caused by burst pipes; escape of water; mould and mildew; theft accompanied by forcible and violent entry or exit; moth, insect or vermin damage caused an external source; fire; lightning; explosion; earthquake; storm; flood; riot; strike; civil commotion; malicious damage; and impact by vehicles or aircraft.

Yes. All customers must either take out contents protection for their goods through our Enhanced Liability Service or provide proof of insurance cover for goods in self storage, before they can store with us. If using your own insurance provider you will need to ask them to add an addendum to your policy to include the name and address of the store you are using.

We would always recommend using our own specialist self storage contents protection provided through our Enhanced Liability Service, which in the event of a claim, will provide you with both the appropriate cover and dedicated support. Third party policies may not be able to provide this level of service in helping you process any claim.

Not all household insurances will cover you whilst your possessions are away from your home in a self storage facility. Your household policy might state it covers “contents away from home”, but usually that does not include cover in self storage, so please check the terms of your policy.

If choosing to arrange your own insurance cover, your policy must provide the same high level of cover as Big Yellow’s Enhanced Liability Service. Your documentation, certificate, cover note and/or correspondence from your broker must be checked to ensure the following (please highlight all of these following points on your document(s) for our ease of reference):

The certificate/cover note is current. All certificates last for one year and have an expiry date.

The certificate/cover note/correspondence states that the cover provided matches the ‘normal perils’ covered within Big Yellow’s Enhanced Liability Service. These are: Actual physical loss of or damage to your goods caused by fire, lightning, aircraft, explosion, earthquake, riot, strike, civil commotion, malicious damage, storm, flood, ingress of water or other liquid substance, mould, mildew, burst pipes, escape of water from fixed installations, moth, insect or vermin damage caused by an external source, impact by vehicles, and theft accompanied by forcible and violent entry or exit from the building or storage room.

The certificate must state that it covers goods stored in ‘any unspecified warehouse or storage unit’ or ‘anywhere in the UK’ or the certificate must name the store you are storing at and the full postal address of the premises.

The stored goods value given on your storage inventory does not exceed the value on the certificate/cover note/correspondence.

The certificate/cover note needs to be in the name of the Customer on the Licence, or the Customer noted on the Licence, as the owner of the goods.

In addition, you will have needed to complete your storage inventory, which should identify any valuable items you have placed in storage. Please remember it is your responsibility to keep your policy documentation valid and up to date.

The cost of contents protection for your goods through our Enhanced Liability Service is entirely dependent on the full replacement value of the items you are storing if you had to buy them all new. We refer to this as the new full replacement value. We cannot estimate this value as we are unaware what each customer may want to store. This is why we prefer to speak with you directly, to work out a bespoke price for you. The cost of this cover starts from £6.25 per week and provides up to £4,000 of protection

No. Because the level of cover required is dependent on the full new replacement value of the goods that you store and we do not know what you intend to store at the quote stage; it is therefore not possible for us to include this cost within your quote. As a guideline, if taking out our service, compensation cover of £6,000 costs £8.00 per week. For more details, please call your local store or our UK based Customer Support Centre on 0800 783 4949 or 01276 477177.

The minimum value is the full new replacement value of your goods. Our service starts from up to £4,000 at a cost of £6.25 per week. However, if you fail to declare the full new replacement value of all your goods on the Enhanced Liability Service Application Form, in the event of a compensation claim you will only be entitled to recover the proportion of the loss as the declared value bears to the full new replacement value of your goods. Please be aware that the consequence of under valuing your goods with us will be a reduced settlement of any claim.

This depends on the full new replacement value of your goods if you had to buy them again today. As a guide, our average customer tends to take £6,000 of protection at a cost of £8.00 per week. Please call your local store or speak to our UK based Customer Support Centre on 0800 783 4949 or 01276 477177 where a member of our team can work out a personal quote for you.

If you choose to have contents protection for your goods through our Enhanced Liability Service this will be set up when you come into the store to sign your customer licence, before you move into your storage room.

All large items must be included in your storage inventory, but you do not need to be so detailed as to include the title of every book within a box. For example, "Box of 20 books" would be a sufficient description plus their total value. Any items with a full replacement value of £1,000 or more must be listed on your inventory.

Any higher valued items should be declared separately or made known to us with their individual value. When using our Check-in Online feature, please indicate the higher valued item in the item entry box e.g. Box of 20 books – Romeo and Juliet hardback worth £55. With a value for the entire box e.g. £150. We will then assume that the remaining total of £95 is to be divided between the other 19 books, giving them an average value of £5 each.

An inventory of the items you are storing is required as part of our terms and conditions for storage. When taking out contents protection for your goods through our Enhanced Liability Service, the storage inventory also forms part of the Licence Terms & Conditions.

You will need to contact either the store you are storing with or our UK based Customer Support Centre on 0800 783 4949 or 01276 477177.

Depending on how much this change affects your Contents Protection, you may need to come into store and sign a new licence.  You will be advised of this when you call.

No. We let you know upfront all the costs that will be involved before you move in. There are 4 things you need to consider. Your refundable security deposit, storage fees, contents protection and a padlock to secure your room, if you don’t already own a suitable one.

All customers are required to pay a security deposit before storing. How much is dependent on the size room you choose. The amount is usually the equivalent of one week's storage fees (inc. VAT) for our storage rooms and 28 days of storage fees if you are a Flexi Office or Vehicle Parking customer.

Storage is paid in advance and 4 weekly.  When you move in you will need to pay for your first storage period, which may be either 4, 8 or 12 weeks storage depending on the opening offer available at the time.  You will then continue paying every 4 weeks until you give us notice to move out.

Contents protection is dependent on the full new replacement value of your goods if you had to buy them again today. Please call your local store or speak to our UK based Customer Support Centre on 0800 783 4949 or 01276 477177 where a member of our team can work this out for you. The cost of contents protection for your goods through our Enhanced Liability Service starts from £6.25 per week for £4,000 of cover.

Padlocks need to fit our doors. The ones we sell are the correct size and of a suitable durability. Both contain a hardened steel shackle of either 8mm or 9mm in diameter. Please check with the store if you are bringing your own padlock that it is suitable for use.

Yes. You can come and go as often as you like, removing and adding items from your room as you need. You do not need to move everything in at once on the day the sign the storage licence.  Just remember to keep your inventory and value of goods being stored up to date as this could affect the cover you have on your room. Please inform the store staff of any changes to the contents of your room.

No. The contents protection we provide through our Enhanced Liability Service is for all storage users. Your goods will be protected whether you are a business customer or a domestic customer, as the cover is specific to the goods you are storing, not the type of customer. If you are using your own cover, please ensure it states it is suitable for self storage in a place away from your office / normal business location.

Photo ID - Passport, driving licence, national ID card, Inland Revenue card, UK citizen card or any ID card showing your name and picture.

Company ID – If you are the proprietor/director please provide proof such as a business card stating your title. If you are not the proprietor/director we need a letter from the business to confirm you have the authority to sign the Customer Licence on behalf of the company.

Description of the Business Activity - your business address on headed paper, any relevant brochures or leaflets and website details.

Bank Account Details - A copy of the bank account for the business (not more than 3 months old).

First Payment – Your first payment must be made by credit or debit card – it cannot be cash or a personal cheque. We will set up your Direct Debit for all future payments.

Contents Protection– if using your own insurance provider you will need to ask them to add an addendum to your policy to include the name and address of the store you are using, and we will need a copy of this document for our records.

Vehicle Insurance – as part of your Flexi Office arrangement, subject to store and availability, you will be provided with one free car parking space. To use this space please provide a copy of your valid vehicle insurance.

Our Enhanced Liability Service is the name of the contents protection we can offer you whilst your goods are in storage. This will provide adequate cover for your goods whilst they are away from home in self storage, unlike most home insurance companies.