| A warehouse
(when using moving companies storage) must
insure goods against loss or damage for a minimum of
about $0.30 per pound per article up to $2,000. The
figure may vary slightly depending on the state. If
your antiques china set weighing 10 pounds and
valued at $1,500 is broken in the warehouse you
would be entitled to the tidy sum of $3.00. You may
want to take out additional insurance and the
warehouse operator is required to inform you that
additional insurance is available. Be sure you
understand what the insurance covers in the unlikely
event any goods become damaged. For example if you
take out $3,000 worth of insurance on $12,000 worth
of goods, i.e. ¼ of the value, if there is $4,000
worth of damage you would be covered for only $1,000
of the loss
Many people assume that
self-storage providers will automatically provide
insurance for the goods they store - after all, they
must be paying it for themselves anyway. This is not
generally the case. Few self-storage companies will
offer full and comprehensive item insurance within
the standard rental charges that you pay. If they
do, you'll probably find that you're paying extra
rental charges to cover the cost. Some may offer
basic cover as part of the package based on the size
of unit you hire but this will probably not be
enough for your needs, bearing in mind that the
goods you store may be valuable or of unspecific
sentimental value. All will recommend that you check
out your insurance options carefully before placing
your goods into self-storage.
Your first step should be to
contact your home insurer to see if the items you
place in the facility will be covered by your
domestic home contents policy. It may be that you
are fully covered for goods stored away from home or
you may be able to pay an additional small premium
to get such cover. This could well be cheaper than
taking out a separate insurance policy. If you do
provide your own insurance cover, be aware that the
self-storage provider you choose may ask to see
proof of your policy before they will let you rent
space.
The majority of self-storage
providers will offer help with insurance. Some have
policies of their own in place that you can buy or
may even insist that you take out their policy
before you can rent a unit. In this case, you will
normally have to give the provider an inventory of
contents with values before they will insure you and
you'll usually be offered a range of policies
tailored to your actual needs. Others may recommend
industry standard or suitable insurance policies
designed for self-storage - these are often offered
at competitive rates in comparison to the ones you
could source for yourself.
A key point to remember is that
your insurance needs will change if you add to or
remove items from self-storage. Check with your
insurance provider before taking out a policy that
it can be changed if you need to.
Although some self-storage
facilities won't insist that you have insurance
cover, many will and it makes sense to put adequate
cover in place. Don't be lulled into a false sense
of security just because the facility you've chosen
has implemented good security measures and a ban on
smoking on site for example. Your goods are
technically out of your hands in self-storage and,
although the facility may be doing everything it can
to avoid theft, they can do little against accidents
and damage caused by fires, explosions, malicious
damage, floods, storms and other natural disasters |
