Contents Protection starts the moment your things go into storage and lasts until you take them out. Before that, packing, loading and the drive sit with your removal firm's cover or, if it extends to the move, your home contents policy; many home policies don't cover a do-it-yourself or man-and-van move. If you have neither, for example because you're between homes, your home policy ends around the move, or you're clearing a late parent's house yourself, the drive may not be covered at all. Whether Contents Protection covers goods on the way to the unit or while you're unloading isn't published; check your removal firm's or home policy for transit, and ask us on 0800 2545585. Ask before moving day, especially if someone else will meet the crew before you arrive.
Contents Protection is Wigwam's own policy, underwritten by RSA under its "Self Storage Customers' Goods" scheme. The Summary of Insurance isn't published online; you're given it when you take the cover, and you can ask for a copy on 0800 2545585. When you do, ask what it says about goods being unloaded.
Where each stage of the move sits
| Stage | What may cover it | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Packing and loading at home | Your home contents policy, at the insured address | Where your insurer's cover stops once things leave the house |
| On the road, moving it yourself | Your home contents policy may not cover a do-it-yourself move | Ask your insurer (see below) |
| On the road, with a removal firm | The firm's insurance, or its liability under the removal contract | What's included, the limit, the excess and the claim deadline |
| On our site, before it's in your unit | Not published | Ask us on 0800 2545585: is a load covered in the car park, in a corridor or on a trolley, and from which load on a multi-trip day? |
| In your unit | Our Contents Protection, or your own policy if you've proved it covers self storage | That the value covers everything you'll bring |
| Taking things out later | Storage cover lasts until you take your things out | The same transit questions, in reverse |
If you're moving it yourself
Some home policies extend to belongings being moved, often in a section called "contents in transit", "goods in transit" or "contents temporarily removed". But one broker, Alan Boswell Group, says most insurers stipulate that you must use a professional removals firm for that cover to be valid, and that a do-it-yourself move may need a specialist policy. So ask your insurer where their cover stops: at your front door, on the van, or not at all. If it doesn't reach the drive, ask your insurer or a broker whether they offer one-off "goods in transit" cover for the move.
If you're using a hired van, or a borrowed car and trailer, check whether that vehicle's insurance covers the goods carried; don't assume it does.
If a removal firm or man-and-van is moving you
Firms that belong to the British Association of Removers (BAR) must, under its Code of Practice, either offer insurance against loss or damage to household goods, meeting BAR's minimum standards, or accept liability under the removal contract, based on a value you declare. They must also draw your attention to the clauses on limits of liability and the time limit for making a claim. Firms outside BAR set their own terms, so read those clauses closely. You can check membership on BAR's member search. A man-and-van may or may not carry goods-in-transit cover, so ask what they have and the limit before booking. The same broker says home contents insurance typically won't cover a 'man with a van' move, so check both.
Ask the firm:
- what their cover pays for, and up to what value;
- the excess, and the deadline for reporting damage;
- whether the cover runs until your things are inside the unit, or stops at the van.
Someone from your side has to be at the unit while a removals crew is loading or unloading: you, or a friend, relative or colleague you've given their own access. Our guides are clear that "a removals crew cannot be left to load into the unit without you". That person can tick items off the firm's inventory and note any damage before signing, which is evidence a transit claim will need. Can a removals firm drop off at my unit without me? explains how to set up their access.
Moving someone else's things, or business stock
If the goods aren't yours (a relative's, or from a late parent's home), check whether your own policy covers them; it may not. If the home policy is in someone else's name, or joint (after a separation, for example), ask that insurer whether it covers your belongings in transit. If you're dealing with an estate, see what happens to a storage unit when the renter dies.
A business moving stock or tools in its own vehicle should check its business or goods-in-transit insurance in the same way.
Before moving day
- Put your questions to your insurer, your removal firm or the vehicle's insurer, and us.
- On a move of several trips, declare the full value you'll store, including later trips, when you take the cover.
- The published list of covered risks doesn't mention accidental damage you cause yourself, and it says it "includes but is not limited to" the risks listed, so ask us.
- Photograph valuable or fragile items before they leave home.
- Keep your removal firm's paperwork until you've checked everything in the unit.
If something is damaged
Damage on the way to us is a claim on your removal firm's cover or your own insurer, under their terms and deadlines.
Once your things are in storage, to claim on Wigwam's Contents Protection, write to us asking us to notify a claim (clause 48 of our terms). We pass it to our insurer, and you give us, the insurer or its loss adjuster the information and evidence reasonably needed. For theft, our Contents Protection page lists "Theft involving forcible entry or exit". What the insurer pays for your goods comes to you, less anything owed on your account. How soon a claim must be made isn't published; ring 0800 2545585 as soon as you find the loss and ask. For the steps, see how do I make a claim.
What our terms say, and why
Our insurance FAQ says "All customers require contents protection for their stored goods". You can "accept our contents protection cover, or arrange insurance at your own expense". Your own policy should cover goods stored in a self-storage facility and specify our name and the site's full postal address. If you take ours first, we refund the Goods Protection charges in full when you supply proof of your own cover within 14 days of your move-in.
The "Goods" in our agreement are the goods stored by you in your unit. Clause 31 makes it a condition that they stay insured for their Replacement Value "at all times … while they are in storage", and that the total value in the unit won't exceed the value insured.
Clause 30 says your goods are stored "at Your sole risk and responsibility". It excludes our liability for loss of or damage to your goods "except where this results from Our negligence or breach of contract, in which case Our liability will be limited to the sum of £100 in total". It does not limit our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence. That £100 limit is our side, under the storage terms; damage your removal firm does to your goods is a matter for the firm's contract and cover. That's why the insurance requirement exists: a policy in your name, or taken through us, is what pays out. Damage to the site works the other way. Under clause 22(f) you must not cause damage to the unit or site, and that "includes by removal, haulage or delivery contractors", so damage the crew does is yours to answer for.
Under clause 31 we don't advise on what any policy covers, even one arranged through us, so it's for you to judge whether your cover is enough.
Ready to book?
Get a price online, or call us on 0800 2545585.
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