Yes, sealed wine, beer and cider that you bought or made legally can go in a unit. Opened bottles, a brew that is still fermenting, and counterfeit or smuggled drink can't. Spirits and fortified drinks such as port, sherry and liqueurs are the open question: our terms bar "combustible or flammable substances" without naming drinks, so call us on 0800 2545585 before you store them. Our units aren't climate-controlled for wine, so they are not the place to age it, and drink held in bond or in duty suspension can't go in until the duty is paid.
What can go in, item by item
| Item | Can it go in the unit? |
|---|---|
| Sealed wine, beer or cider, in bottles, cans or cases | Yes |
| Sealed spirits (whisky, gin, vodka, rum), port, sherry, liqueurs | Ask us first: see the next section |
| Opened or part-drunk bottles, opened boxes of wine | No |
| Counterfeit or smuggled alcohol | No: clause 18(g) |
| Home brew still fermenting | No: brewing isn't storage (clause 22), and clause 18(f) bars "any item that emits fumes, or odours" |
| Capped bottle-conditioned beer in its first weeks | Ask us first: bottles still conditioning can burst, and clause 27 lets us refuse goods "if in Our opinion storage of such Goods creates a risk to the safety of any person or property" |
| Clean, dry brewing kit, and empty kegs with no gas left in them | Yes |
| Malt, grain and hops | Only if securely packed against vermin (clause 18(a)); check with us first |
| Brewing cleaners and sanitisers | No: clause 18(e) bars "chemicals" |
| CO2 or other gas cylinders and cartridges, for kegs, bar taps or soda siphons | No: clause 18(c) names "gas" and "compressed gases" |
| Wine racks, glassware, bar kit, rinsed empty bottles, labels and gift boxes | Yes |
Opened bottles stay out however short the stay. Our prohibited-items guide keeps out "Opened or unsealed food, anything that will decay", because "scent attracts pests".
Can I store spirits like whisky or gin?
Ask us first. Clause 18(c) says you must not store "combustible or flammable substances including but not limited to gas, paint, petrol, oil, cleaning solvents or compressed gases". Drinks aren't on that list, but "including but not limited to" means the list isn't complete. The label test from our flammable liquids entry doesn't settle it either: drinks don't have to carry the flame symbol, so no symbol doesn't rule a bottle in.
Before you pack them, call 0800 2545585 and ask: "Can I store sealed spirits and fortified drinks, and is there a limit on how many bottles, or on strength, such as cask-strength?" Clause 27 also lets us refuse, or ask you to remove, goods that "in Our opinion" create "a risk to the safety of any person or property".
Spirits are strong enough to burn, which wine and beer aren't, and our own renovation guide calls a stray bottle of spirits a fire-safety risk; that's why we ask you to check first. Until we've confirmed, keep them at home.
Wine collections: allowed, but not for ageing
Sealed wine is allowed; the question is conditions. Our own guide is plain: a Wigwam unit "is not climate-controlled in the specialist sense: if your goods require precise humidity and temperature management, wine storage or museum-grade archival conditions, we are not the right operator for that." So a collection you're ageing belongs with a specialist wine store, while the everyday bottles travelling with a house move are fine. Your wine merchant can say how a few months would affect a particular wine.
Clause 31 says your goods must remain "adequately insured by You at all times for their Replacement Value (as set out on the Cover Sheet)", so include the wine at what it would cost to replace. You can take our Contents Protection or "arrange insurance at your own expense". Our cover "specifically does not cover atmospheric or climatic damage", so don't count on it for wine spoiled by heat or cold.
Clause 18(j) bars "items which are unique in nature and/or where the value to You cannot be assessed on a financial basis": for rare or irreplaceable bottles, ask us whether they fall under it. Wine held in bond needs its duty paid before it can come to a unit.
Home brewing: store the kit, not the brew
Rinsed, dry kit can go in: fermenters, bottles, cappers, an electric boiler, empty kegs. Clause 22(b) bars any nuisance, "including the escape of any substance or odour", so clean it first. A gas burner's bottle stays out (clause 18(c)). Malt, grain and hops count as food: clause 18(a) bars "food or perishable goods unless securely packed so they are protected from and do not attract vermin".
Brewing in the unit isn't possible. Clause 22 says the unit is used "solely for the purpose of storage", a live fermentation gives off smells (clause 18(f)), and you can't connect a power supply for equipment unless Wigwam authorises it (clause 22(e)). Capped bottle-conditioned beer is a separate question: bottles still conditioning can burst, and clause 27 lets us refuse goods that "in Our opinion" create "a risk to the safety of any person or property". Let it finish its first weeks at home, or ask us.
HMRC says you don't need its producer approval to make alcohol for "domestic use (this excludes spirits)", so that exemption covers home-made beer, wine and cider but not spirits.
Clearing a relative's home, or already stored
If you're clearing a parent's house, go through the sideboard and drinks cabinet before the furniture comes to us. Our renovation guide warns: "A forgotten bottle of spirits in a sideboard or an old tin of polish in a cabinet is both a leak risk and a fire-safety one." Sealed wine and beer can go in with the rest. Opened bottles can't, and in our view a seeping cork counts as opened. For spirits, port, sherry and liqueurs, ring 0800 2545585 first. Bottles kept for sentimental reasons: see clause 18(j) above.
Already stored opened bottles or a fermenting batch? Take them out on your next visit. If something has leaked, or you can't get to the site soon, call us.
Drinks businesses: duty-paid stock only
Small drinks brands, market traders, online sellers and event bars can keep sealed, duty-paid stock in a business storage unit.
Duty-suspended stock can't go in. HMRC's excise-goods guidance defines an excise warehouse as "any place of security approved by HMRC, where goods liable for excise duty can be stored without payment of the duty", and its producer-approval (APPA) guidance covers approved "premises where you can produce alcoholic products and hold them in duty suspension". Only stock with the duty already paid belongs in a unit.
Storage, not a shop. You can pick and pack orders from your own stock during access hours (normally 6am to 10pm; check your site's page), but the unit is "solely for the purpose of storage", can't be a "business or mailing address" (clause 22(a)), and our stock guide adds "you cannot run retail sales or a public collection point from it". With alcohol, ask your licensing authority first, because section 190 of the Licensing Act 2003 says a sale "is to be treated as taking place where the alcohol is appropriated to the contract", meaning where the bottles are set aside for that order.
Deliveries. Wigwam does not accept, receive or sign for deliveries for you. Someone from your side needs to be there to meet the courier or haulier. There is no forklift at any Wigwam site, so a pallet needs a haulier with a tail-lift and a pallet truck. See receiving stock at a unit.
Buying and insuring. Clause 18(g) bars "illicit (counterfeit/smuggled) tobacco or alcohol". If you buy alcohol to sell from a UK wholesaler, HMRC says you need to check the wholesaler is approved, "repeat this check regularly" and keep records; if you sell to other businesses, you may need approval yourself. Declare your stock at what it would cost you to replace it today, not its selling price and not what you originally paid: our guide puts it as "what it would cost you to replace the stock at today's cost". Lost sales and profit aren't covered by a storage-goods policy, and our terms exclude "lost profits or business interruption" (clause 30(a)); that's a question for your business insurer. Our Summary of Insurance isn't published online, so for how a stock claim is settled, ask us on 0800 2545585. Whether there's a limit on any single item isn't published; if one piece is worth a lot, ask on 0800 2545585 before you store it.
Storing drinks with us
Once the spirits question is answered and anything opened or fermenting is kept at home, get a price online or call us on 0800 2545585. To find your nearest site, see our storage locations.
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