Moving house? Going to live abroad? Perhaps you’re a student moving between your family home and student digs and need somewhere to store all your things? Whatever the reasons may be behind why you need to use a self storage facility, we assure you that they can do a highly effective job of safely and securely storing your belongings. 

If it’s your first time using the services of a self-storage facility, you may be feeling unprepared. What do you need to find out from a self-storage provider? What questions should you be asking?

To try and help, our team at Now Storage have created a list of questions to ask a self-storage facility. Continue reading to find out more.

How can I insure the items I put in a storage facility? 

Making sure the possessions you’re placing in a storage facility are covered by a relevant insurance policy is important. Therefore, you need to take out your own separate insurance policy or ask the storage provider you’re considering using if they offer insurance. 

Here at Now Storage, we offer customers our own insurance coverage starting from £2 per week. We do allow you to hire units without having an insurance policy, however, doing this requires you to sign a document declaring that you agree to sole responsibility for all the stored items. 

However, having insurance for your personal or business items in a storage facility is an all-round smart idea, particularly if you are planning on storing expensive items or anything which holds priceless sentimental value to you, such as family photos or heirlooms. If you decide to take out an insurance policy from another provider, we require you to provide us with your policy number.

When can you access your storage unit?

Asking the relevant questions so you know when you will be able to actually access your possessions stored at your chosen storage facility is essential. After all, you don’t want to turn up at the wrong time outside of the opening hours and not be able to access the storage unit you’ve paid to hire. 

The times you can access your storage unit will really depend on the storage facility company you choose and their opening times. Hopefully, you will find one with nice flexible opening hours that fits around your lifestyle. 

At Now Storage, across all of our 13 storage facility sites across England and Wales, you can enjoy access to your storage seven days a week. Please note, opening times can vary from one location to another. With this in mind, take a look at our website for the location you’ve chosen so you can find out the opening times.

What are the security provisions for your units? 

Logically and rightly so, the security of your possessions will be one of the things at the forefront of your mind when you hire a storage unit. You want to be left with the peace of mind that your belongings are safely and soundly stored away, especially if you’re undergoing something that’s already a pretty stressful endeavour, such as moving house.

So, be sure to ask for detailed answers to questions regarding the security provisions a storage facility has put in place for its service users. Here at Now Storage, thanks to the 24-hour security measures we have in operation at all of our facilities, you can rest assured that your belongings will remain safe and secure with us! 

What forms of payment do you accept? 

In order to ensure you pay your storage unit rent fully and on time, you also will want to ask about the payment methods a storage facility will accept. At Now Storage, our preferred payment method is direct debit every four weeks.

Can I first visit the storage facility site in person? 

Before committing to handing over cash to use a storage facility, you may first want to ask if you can visit the site in person. Making a visit in person can help you to get a better idea of the right size storage unit to house your possessions.

Can I change my storage rental dates?

You may also want to learn about how you can go about altering your previously agreed rental storage dates should you ever want to do so. Great self-storage providers should be flexible by doing all they can to satisfy their customers’ needs. You can drop our head office a call on 0800 0787 110 if you want to change your rental dates. 

How do you ensure your units are kept clean and hygienic? 

You ought to ask probing questions to make sure the storage space you’re hiring is nice and clean, hygienic, and well looked after. You want your items to leave a storage unit in the same condition they entered, and you certainly don’t want your furniture or clothes gathering any dust or mould. We work hard to ensure that our units are 100% spic and span and clean for our customers. 

You now should understand a great deal more about the sorts of questions you should be asking a storage facility. Get in touch with Now Storage today by calling our head office on 0800 0787 110 or dropping us a message on our company website.