Insurance summary - key facts

Please read this page carefully as it provides a summary of cover. It does not show all of the benefits, exclusions or limitations.

Please refer to the Confirmation of Insurance Cover for full details of all terms, conditions and exclusions.

We have not provided you with a personal recommendation as to whether this insurance is suitable for your specific needs. This insurance product is designed to provide cover to meet the demands and needs of those who wish to insure loss of or damage to their property whilst in transit to or stored with a Self Storage company.

PLEASE NOTE THAT IRRESPECTIVE OF WHETHER YOU DO OR DO NOT PURCHASE THIS INSURANCE THE LIABILITY OF THE SELF STORAGE COMPANY FOR ACTUAL PHYSICAL LOSS OF OR DAMAGE TO YOUR PROPERTY IS LIMITED BY THE LICENCE AGREEMENT WHICH FORMS PART OF THEIR CONTRACT WITH YOU.

• This insurance is available to cover property being stored within the UK at the storage facility & cover goods in transit to the Self Storage company (See below for full information).
• The insurance cover extends to a full range of Insured Perils suitable for self storage risks ie: fire, lightning, explosion, earthquake, storm, flood, burst pipes & / or leaking pipes, theft accompanied by forcible and violent entry or exit, riot, strike, civil commotion, malicious damage and impact by vehicles or aircraft as described in Clause 1. Including Accidental Damage.
• Settlement of claims in respect of Business Customers stock is based on replacement, repair and/or compensation, taking into consideration the age, quality, degree of use and consequent market value.
• Settlement of claims in respect of all other property of Business Customers and all the Property of Domestic Customers is based on replacement (new for old).
• Your property is covered from the start of your journey, on the day you agreed to rent a room, to time they are placed into the storage unit until the time they are finally removed from storage, subject to your maintaining the insurance by payment of the required premiums for the full period of storage and subject to the terms, conditions and exclusions of the insurance.

Physical loss of or damage (and/or the additional perils listed below) to home contents and personal effects (including sports equipment, boats, motorcycles, cycles and trailers) occurring during the Period of Insurance shown in the Confirmation of Insurance whilst in transit on the day of moving in, within an enclosed car or commercial vehicle to any Safestore location in the UK and whilst being loaded into the allocated room on the premises of Safestore.

The perils covered are:

• road traffic accident where the conveying car or commercial vehicle is also damaged
• theft where entry or exit was effected by forcible and violent means

This Cover in Transit does not cover:

• property relating to any business or commercial venture
• loss or damage where the conveying car or commercial vehicle was unattended
• more than £10,000 or your Sum Insured whichever is the less
• loss or damage to property arising out of packing which was inadequate to withstand normal handling during transit
• loss or damage to property left unattended any Safestore location in the UK unless secured in the allocated room

Our customers are covered by a insurance Policy arranged by Safestore Ltd with Assay Insurance Services Limited . All claims are handled on behalf of Safestore Ltd by Royal & Sun Alliance plc.

This policy is for a single period or renewable as agreed (usually 4 weeks). Please note that failure to pay your storage rental charges will invalidate your insurance cover as this forms part of the rental charge.

This Insurance cover is only effective whilst the property is stored within the facility of the Self Storage company within the UK, in addition to Cover in Transit as detailed above.

The insurance limit will be the sum insured you have selected, up to a maximum of £25,000. If you require a higher limit than £25,000 please ask your Self Storage company to request this from Underwriters. This is detailed in Clause 2 of the Confirmation of Insurance.

Most types of property will be insured but those that will NOT be covered by the terms of this insurance are detailed in Clause 13 These are :

• Money, Coins, Bullion, Deeds, Bonds, Securities and the like, Livestock, Explosives & Flammables, Data Records other than the cost of blank carrying materials.

Certain types of Property are covered but only up to specified limits. For full details see Clause 12 These are as follows :

• Stamps of all kinds, Jewellery, Watches and Precious Stones – a £500 combined total limit applies for all such items.
• Furs, fine arts, mobile phones, perfumery, beers, wines, spirits and the like, tobacco, cigars, cigarettes - a £10,000 combined total limit applies for all such items.
• Electronic items – a £10,000 total limit applies for all such items.

Electronic items are defined as all items of consumer and commercial electrical appliances and instruments including but not limited to radios, televisions, computers, computer software, hard drives, chips, microchips, printed circuit boards and their components, modems, monitors, cameras, facsimile machines, photocopiers, VCR's, hi-fi equipment, stereos, CD players and the like. (Heavy electrical items such as switchgear, turbines, generators and the like shall be deemed not to be electronics.)

You may request cover for higher limits for any of the property, which is subject to limitation of value.

This should be discussed with the Self Storage Company and agreement should be obtained in writing from them when they have received agreement from Underwriters.

There may be special terms and / or an additional premium required.

All the excluded causes are listed in Clause 14. or in Cover in Transit. The more significant of these exclusions are as follows:

• Consequential loss – We will not pay for any losses that are not directly associated with the incident that caused you to claim, unless expressly stated in the policy.
• Loss or damage which is more specifically insured on another insurance elsewhere, for example your Household insurance policy.
• Loss or damage caused by or resulting from any act(s) of terrorism
• Please carefully read Clause 14 for the remaining excluded causes

Clause 8 states that you will be responsible for bearing the first £50 of any claim.

Actual physical loss of or damage to your property caused by fire, lightning, explosion, earthquake, storm, flood, burst pipes & / or leaking pipes, theft accompanied by forcible and violent entry or exit, riot, strike, civil commotion, malicious damage and impact by vehicles or aircraft as described in clause 2.

A claim will be met when one of the listed Insured Perils has occurred and, as a direct result, your property is lost or through accidental damage.

Please see Clauses 2, 3 and 6

You are asked to state what sum insured you require for the insurance of your property. If you require more than £25,000 you should apply to the Self Storage Company who will seek agreement from Underwriters.

The insurance cover in respect of Business Customer’s stock is arranged on the basis of replacement, repair and/or compensation at Underwriter's option. Underwriters will take into consideration the age, quality, degree of use and consequent market value of items when calculating the settlement. Special conditions apply to paper documents (see Clause 6). It is conditional that you insure for the full replacement value of all your property. If you fail to do so, any claim will be reduced to reflect the amount of under-insurance. For example, if you insure for only 50% of the true full replacement value, any claim will also be reduced by 50%.

It is your own sole responsibility to ensure that the sum insured is maintained at an adequate level throughout the duration of this insurance so we recommend regular reviews are carried out. This is particularly important where your property is in store for some time.

The insurance cover in respect of all other Property of Business Customer’s and all the Property of Domestic Customer’s is arranged on the basis of replacement (new for old) at Underwriter’s option. Special conditions apply to paper documents (see Clause 6).

It is conditional that you insure for the full replacement value of all your property. If you fail to do so, any claim will be reduced to reflect the amount of under-insurance. For example, if you insure for only 50% of the true replacement value, any claim will also be reduced by 50%.

It is your own sole responsibility to ensure that the sum insured is maintained at an adequate level throughout the duration of this insurance so we recommend regular reviews are carried out. This is particularly important where your property is in store for some time.

There is also a Pairs & Sets Clause (Clause 4) under which claim settlements in respect of any such items (for example, dining suites, cutlery services etc) will be limited to the part of the pair or set that has been lost or damaged. No payment will be made by insurers for any parts of the pair or set not lost or damaged.

You have the right to cancel this insurance without penalty at any time PRIOR TO WHEN THE STORAGE OF YOUR PROPERTY BEGINS. Once the goods are moved into store, your right to cancel ceases and you will be charged the full premium for the insurance up until when you are next due to pay a renewal premium as agreed with your Self Storage company (usually four weekly). Your rights to cancel are set out in Clause 5 of the Confirmation of Insurance.

If once you have checked your policy you decide not to proceed with the insurance you have a statutory right to cancel the policy within 14 days, starting on the day you receive your policy documentation.

It is your responsibility, as set out in Clause 11, to ensure that all material facts have been disclosed to Underwriters i.e. any facts which may affect Underwriters' view of the risk. If you are unsure of whether a fact which has not been detailed in the insurance proposal you have completed needs to be disclosed, it is recommended that details are provided to Underwriters for consideration. Please also ensure that all the information provided by you in your proposal are correct as these details will form the basis of the insurance contract between us. If your circumstances change between the date you purchase the policy and the date when you require the policy to commence, please tell us. Incorrect information or failure to disclose all material facts could invalidate all or part of the cover and result in a claim being declined. An example of a material fact would be that you have previously been refused insurance because you have a criminal conviction.

The claims procedure is clearly set out in the Confirmation of Insurance under Clause 15 which tells you who to contact if you wish to make a claim.

Because of the nature of this insurance, time is of the essence. It is very important to notify any claim as soon as you become aware that loss or damage has occurred. In any event, the insurance requires, as set out in Clause 9, that you to notify claims no later than at the time of removal of your property from the store.

We aim to provide you with a first class service. If we have not delivered the service that you expect or you are concerned with the service provided, we would like the opportunity to put things right.

Initially contact us, write to
Customer Services Manager Safestore Ltd, Brittanic House, Stirling Way, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire WD6 2BT
or Phone 020 8732 1500

If your complaint is against our claim handler Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance plc alone, we will pass your complaint to their nominated contact within 24 hours. This will also happen if we believe that we cannot resolve your complaint without the involvement of Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance plc or there is any query relating to the complaint. The compliance procedure of Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance plc will then apply.

You can contact them direct:
Neil Cann - Broker Claims Manager RSA
T : 01403 231739
M : 07768 235388
Email neil.cann@uk.rsagroup.com
or in writing to Neil Cann RSA 1st Floor St Marks, Northdown, Chart Way Horsham, West Sussex RH12 1XL

If your complaint is not resolved or you are not happy with the response and course of action proposed by Royal & Sun Alliance plc, you can progress your complaint to Royal & Sun Alliance plc Customer Relations Office who will carry out a separate investigation to attempt to resolve your complaint and will issue a final decision.

Customer Relations Office
Royal & Sun Alliance plc
Bowling Mill, Dean Clough Industrial Park
Halifax, HX3 5WA

Tel: 0800 107 6160
Fax: 01422 325 146
E-mail: customerrelationsoffice@uk.royalsun.com

We will acknowledge your complaint within 5 business days of it having been received by us and we will issue you with our final decision letter within 8 weeks.

If you are still not satisfied Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance plc are regulated by the Financial Services Authority whose arbitration service is the Financial Ombudsman Service, and you may be able to refer your complaint to them. However, the Financial Ombudsman Service will not adjudicate on any cases where legal action has commenced or where a final decision has not been issued.

South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall London, E14 9SR

Tel: 0845 080 1800
E-mail: enquiries@financial-ombudsman.org.uk
Website: www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk

Your rights as a customer to take legal action remain unaffected by the existence or use of any complaint procedures referred to above.

In the event you wish to pursue matters further you may be able to refer the matter to the Financial Ombudsman Service. The Financial Ombudsman Service can normally deal with complaints from private individuals and from small businesses with an annual turnover of less than £1 million (for a group of companies, this means a group annual turnover of less than £1 million). The Financial Ombudsman Service can also help with complaints from charities with an annual income of less than £1 million; and from trusts with a net asset value of less than £1 million. 

The Financial Ombudsman Service, South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London E14 9SR
Helpline: 0845 080 1800
Switchboard: 020 7964 1000
Website: www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk

Issue April 2009

Key Facts about our Insurance