If your Direct Debit has bounced or your card payment has failed, call us now on 0800 2545585: the sooner we talk, the more we can do. Each late or cancelled payment adds a Late Payment Fee, and our terms allow us to stop your access and put our own lock on the unit from the day a payment is missed. Storage fees keep running meanwhile. Nothing is sold or thrown away before we've sent a written notice asking you to pay, and the sale steps only begin if the debt still isn't paid after that.
Card expired or replaced? Call us with the new card details and pay the missed amount. If someone else pays for you, label the payment the way we ask you to: our terms say a payment isn't credited unless you identify it "clearly and as directed by Us".
What the terms allow once a payment is missed
Storage fees are paid in advance, every four weeks (13 payments a year), on the due date in your agreement.
| What can happen | What the terms say | Clause |
|---|---|---|
| A fee is added | "a Late Payment Fee each time a payment is late or cancelled" | 5(b) |
| Costs of chasing it are added | "postal, telephone, unit inventory, debt collection, personnel and/or default action costs and associated legal and professional fees" | 5(c) |
| Access stops and the unit is overlocked | we can "refuse You and Your Agents access to the Goods, the Unit and the Facility and to overlock the Unit until the Debt has been paid in full", "without further notice", and "whether or not a formal demand for payment has been made" | 6(a), 15 |
| Your goods can be moved | we can "remove the Goods to another unit or site" and charge "all reasonable costs of doing so" | 6(b) |
| Your deposit is used | your deposit can be put towards what's owed ("apply the Deposit against the Debt") | 6(c) |
| Fees keep running | we can "continue to charge Storage Fees from the date the Debt becomes due until payment is made in full or the Goods are sold or disposed of" | 6 ("You acknowledge that" list, point (a)) |
| Offer value can become payable | see the introductory offer section below | 6 ("You acknowledge that" list, point (c)) |
The amount of the Late Payment Fee isn't published. Ask on 0800 2545585: "How much is the Late Payment Fee, and what collection costs have been added to my account?"
If your payment has already failed
This is the order our terms set, and what you can do at each step.
1. The payment is missed
Access can be stopped and the unit overlocked. The terms don't say how many days after a missed payment that happens in practice, so ask us when you call. What you can do: pay the missed amount by card. If you can't pay it all, pay what you can and tell us what you can pay and when. A payment counts only once it reaches us "in cleared funds" (clause 5), so ask: "If I pay by card on the phone now, when does the lock come off?" If a Direct Debit bounced, ask whether it will be taken again and whether that adds a second fee. While you can still get in, keep anything you can't do without, such as work tools or documents, where you can reach it.
2. We write to you
Before anything is sold or disposed of, clause 8 says we'll give you written notice "directing You to pay". It is sent by registered or recorded delivery to the last postal address you gave us in writing, and by email and/or direct message on social media, and clause 28 asks you to tell us in writing within 48 hours of any change to your contact details. The terms don't set a minimum number of days between that notice and the next step; ask us how long you have. Clause 8 says the sale steps begin "If You fail to pay the Debt", so paying what's owed in full before then means they don't begin. Call us the same day the notice arrives.
3. If the debt still isn't paid
Our terms say we then access the unit and begin the process to sell or dispose of the goods, and you consent to that "without further notice". Goods that aren't saleable, fail to sell, or aren't worth the cost of selling can be disposed of instead, and so can goods that "may contain personal data" (clause 10). If you can pay at this point, tell us straight away and ask whether paying now stops the process.
4. After a sale
The money goes first on the cost of removal and sale, then on the debt. If it doesn't cover everything, you must pay the rest "within 7 days of a written demand". If there's money left over, we'll try to return it to you, and if that isn't reasonably possible we hold it for you, with no interest payable. There's more in how storage unit auctions work.
If you're dealing with this for someone else
If you've found one of our letters in the post of someone who is in hospital or otherwise can't deal with it, call us straight away. Clause 14 says "Only You or Your Agents may access the Unit", and the terms define an Agent as someone the customer authorises, or who comes with them, to access the unit. Being able to access the unit isn't the same as being able to discuss the account, so ask us: "What do you need from me to talk about this account and make a payment on it?" The terms also let us ask for proof of identity. The terms don't provide for putting the steps on hold, so don't assume they've stopped while you sort it out.
If you're named as the alternative contact on the front of the agreement, our terms let us discuss a missed payment with you (clause 28), and if we can't reach the customer, a notice served on you counts as served on them (clause 39).
If you already pay for someone else, the named customer stays responsible: if your payment fails, it's their account that falls behind (how to pay covers setting it up). If the customer has died, ring us before anyone visits, because access needs evidence of the executor's authority; what happens to a storage unit when the renter dies covers what to do.
If the unit holds your business stock or tools
An overlock stops access to everything in the unit, including stock you need to fulfil orders or tools you need for work. Call us before the due date if a customer's late payment to you will make you late paying us, and take out anything you'll need that week while you still have access. Business Debtline (below) gives free advice to the self-employed and small businesses.
If you can't afford the next payment
If you can see a payment coming that you can't make, talk to us before the due date. The terms don't set out payment plans, so we can't promise one here; ask us: "Can I spread this payment?" Paying part of what you owe reduces the debt but doesn't stop the steps above on its own: clause 5 says the time from which we can take action still starts from the due date of the payment you missed. So agree any part payment with us.
Move to a smaller unit
Selling, donating or taking home part of what's stored is what makes a smaller unit possible. If one is free at your site, you can transfer to a smaller unit (can I change to a bigger or smaller unit?). Whether a transfer is possible while a payment is outstanding isn't published, so ask when you call. As an example, Alton's September 2026 price list shows a ground-floor 75 sq ft unit at £202 every four weeks and a ground-floor 50 sq ft unit at £150, a saving of £52 every four weeks, before any introductory offer.
Give notice and leave
Clause 41 lets you end the agreement at any time with written notice, sent the way clause 39 sets out: email info@wigwamstorage.co.uk, or deliver or post it to the address on your Cover Sheet (the front page of your agreement). The notice period is the number of days on the Cover Sheet, which our move-out FAQ says is "Normally 14 days", and fees stop at the end of it. Our guide to giving notice covers how to count the days.
If you're already behind, access can be refused until what's owed is paid, and you need access to empty the unit. Clause 41 says goods left after the end date are dealt with under clause 7, which lets us treat them as abandoned and sell or dispose of them. So ask us to arrange access to clear the unit as part of agreeing what you'll pay. Anything still owed up to the end date stays owed after you leave, and your deposit can be put towards it. Once you've left, our move-out FAQ says we refund "your deposit and any unused days on your contract after the notice period".
Cancelling the Direct Debit or emptying the unit doesn't end the agreement: only written notice does, and clause 5(b) charges the Late Payment Fee on a cancelled payment too.
If you're on an introductory offer
Clause 6 (in the list that begins "You acknowledge that", point (c)) says: "if You do not pay Fees on the Due Date, the value of any discounts and special offers (including periods of free storage) which You have received will be payable by You in full." It covers only the discount you actually received, so ask us for the figure. As an example, Alton's September 2026 price list offers 50% off the first eight weeks, and eight weeks at half price on a £150 unit is £150. The clause names any missed due date, so it can apply to a payment missed after the offer has ended. Ask us whether it has been applied to your account.
Free help if money is tight
If storage is one bill among several, free, impartial debt advice can help you work out what to pay first.
- StepChange Debt Charity: 0800 138 1111, Monday to Friday 8am to 8pm, Saturday 9am to 2pm.
- National Debtline: 0808 808 4000, Monday to Friday 9am to 8pm, Saturday 9.30am to 1pm.
- Citizens Advice Adviceline (England): 0800 144 8848, usually 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday.
- If you're self-employed or run a small business, Business Debtline: 0800 197 6026, Monday to Friday 9am to 8pm.
And talk to us on 0800 2545585; office hours vary by site, so check your site's page. For everyday questions you can also email hello@wigwamstorage.co.uk. Tell us what you can pay and when.
Related questions
- How do storage unit auctions work in the UK?
- How do I give notice to leave my storage unit?
- When will I be charged, and why do I pay in advance?
This page explains our own storage terms. It isn't legal or financial advice.