How Secure Are Self-Storage Facilities?

When using self-storage, it's crucial to make sure your belongings are fully secure and protected. We’ve put together a fully comprehensive self-storage security checklist to ensure your chosen storage centre ticks all the boxes.

Padlock security

A padlock is essential to ensure your storage unit is secure and all your items are kept under lock and key. At Store First, we provide a free high-security padlock worth £12.99 to every customer, so there are no additional expenses later down the line after your initial quote is provided. When enquiring about self-storage, find out whether you need to buy your padlock or if a padlock is included in your storage price.

Contents Protection

Protecting the contents of your self-storage unit provides you with extra reassurance that your belongings are looked after when they are in storage. Contents protection service can be a confusing issue. Many companies charge an additional cost for insurance or protection after you have received your initial quote, so be sure to ask the question to ensure the price you have in mind covers everything you will ultimately need to pay.

To make life easier for you and keep costs minimal, we include £15,000 content protection service in our storage costs, so the price you are given or see online will be the price you pay, with no extras added on at the last minute. The contents protection service fee is to safeguard your storage unit and your possessions against risks like fire, explosion, insect or vermin and theft involving violence or the use of force. Providing you have paid your storage fee, which includes the contents protection service fee, you will be entitled to receive up to £15,000 if we fail to prevent damage or loss as a result of any risk which is deemed to be within our control.

CCTV and alarms

Surveillance equipment like CCTV and alarm systems are crucial for ensuring your things are safe when kept in self-storage. All Store First centres are fitted with digital CCTV systems, which are encrypted with a time and date stamp to ensure extensive monitoring at all our locations. Our storage centres also have complete perimeter alarm systems monitored 24 hours a day. Self-storage security is an essential item for your checklist when approaching different storage companies, so make sure you enquire about monitoring systems and alarms.

Fire and smoke protection

Storage units should be fully protected by the critical systems put in place to help prevent fires. All of our storage centres are equipped with fire and smoke detection systems, which independent assessors regularly inspect. When researching how secure your self-storage unit is, make this a priority to discuss with your self-storage provider. We ban the storage of any items which could cause fire, for example, combustible or flammable materials like gas, paint, petrol or oil. We don't allow customers to store firearms, explosives, ammunition or weapons of any kind, chemicals, toxic waste or compressed gases.

Secure out-of-hours access

You may need to access your storage unit out of hours, so enquire about out-of-hours access when choosing a storage centre. Sometimes this will be unavailable or available at any extra cost, so it's important to weigh this up early if 24-hour access is going to be a deal breaker for you. All of our storage centres offer 24-hour access to every customer free of charge, so if this is something you require, we will provide you with a fob to gain entry at any time you need to get into your unit.

Staffed storage centres

If you need to visit your storage centre at weekends and you'd rather have a staff member on-site to assist you with any queries or advice, it's a good idea to check the opening hours for your chosen storage provider. Many customers feel safer accessing their storage unit when a staff member is there, so if that's crucial for you, look for a storage facility that opens daily. To help our customers keep our storage centres safe and secure, we have staff on-site seven days a week. From Monday to Saturday, our storage centres are open from 8 am until 6 pm, enabling customers to pop in before or after work and be greeted with a friendly face. On Sundays and bank holidays, our centres are open from 10 am until 4 pm, giving you ample time to access your storage unit securely and tap into any help or advice you may require from our knowledgeable and friendly team.

How secure is self-storage?

Hopefully, we've given you the tools you need to determine whether your chosen storage provider offers the level of security you want and need for your belongings and reassured you that we tick all of the boxes when it comes to secure storage! Our approach to self-storage is centred on simple, honest pricing, so the price you see when you first search online or receive a quote from a team member is the total price you will pay. 

If you have any more questions about how secure self-storage is, please call us and talk to one of our team, who will be happy to help. Find your nearest centre to contact here.