There may be occasions when for practical reasons or for peace of mind you’ll want to give someone access to your storage unit. Perhaps you’re travelling abroad and need a friend, relative or personal assistant to check that all is well with your stored domestic goods. Or maybe you’ve asked a removal firm to bring a large piece of furniture out of your storage unit. Some storage companies have a preferred removal firm, and it can save a lot of hassle to use them. They should know the site, and the staff will know and trust them.
Inform your storage company
When you arrange for someone else to access your storage unit, it’s a good idea to give your storage company a heads-up that someone will be coming to your unit. Staff may need to escort them for security reasons, or your representative may just need help finding the right spot. Informing the storage company in advance will save any awkward questions on site – although you should take it as a good sign if staff from your storage company do challenge a stranger rummaging around in your lock-up.
Some storage companies with more formal access arrangements will let you register another person on your account, and this can be a simple way of giving a removal company or friend access to your unit. If the need for access is temporary, don’t forget to ask your storage company to take their name off your record once the job is done.
Share the key to your padlock
For storage units secured with a simple padlock, the easiest way to give a friend or relative access to your goods is to give them a key. We’d recommend hanging on to a spare key just in case. And for complete peace of mind, once they no longer need access, you may want to switch to using another padlock.
Share the access codes to your storage unit
If you access your storage unit by tapping a code into a keypad, or you lock it with a combination lock, it’s easy to share the code with whoever needs to access your unit. A storage company that takes security seriously will let you change the code to your storage room. And you should be able to easily change the code on your own combination lock. It’s worth doing this from time to time anyway, for your own peace of mind.
Does a multi-access storage unit cost more?
If you plan to have different people accessing your storage unit, then it might be beneficial to select a storage company with good security and electronic access. Of course a more high-tech storage company is likely to be more expensive.
As well as facilities and features, there are some other factors to take into account when working out how much a self-storage unit costs. So it’s best to get quotes from a few storage companies in your area and see how they compare. And remember to get separate quotes for insurance, too: some storage companies do offer this, but you’ll usually get best value from a specialist self-storage insurer like Store and Insure. We can offer self-storage insurance from less than £1.35 a week.
