Self storage and free van hire
Many self storage companies offer free van hire to help you move in. But is this really a good deal? That depends largely on how much stuff you plan to transport.
What the self storage companies offer
Each self storage company offers a slightly different package of free van hire, each with their own terms and conditions. Amongst the major companies, some of these are better than others:
Big Yellow – Big Yellow self storage offers free van hire at all stores with a company chosen by the customer, although they will also recommend one to them if needed. However, this offer only applies to move-ins, and the customer has to be renting a self storage unit of at least 35 sq ft for a minimum of twelve weeks. The maximum van hire credit per customer is £50.
Big Yellow self storage customers can also access £20 worth of freed credit when they register with Streetvan.
Safestore – Safestore self storage offers preferential van hire rates with Europcar for their customers, which range from the small Renault Kangaroo (2m2 transport space) at £35.60 per day, to the large Luton Transit (7m2) at £80.80 per day, all including unlimited miles. Customers must have had a valid driving licence for at least 2 years and be over 25.
Access Self Storage – Access offers free transport for their customers through Enterprise Van Hire, again with a minimum storage size and duration of tenure, and a maximum hire cost of £38. Like Big Yellow, they also offer customers free membership of Streetvan.
These offers seem generous, but how do they compare to the alternative of just hiring a van yourself?
Free van hire with self storage: Less generous then it seems
When compared to the standard rates charged by commercial van hire companies, the problem is that these offers only give away enough credit to hire very small vans.
At Thrifty Car and Van Rental, the amount of credit offered by Big Yellow would only be enough to hire the smallest capacity van they offer, while the Access Self Storage one wouldn’t even cover that.
The Thrifty ‘Economy’ Van costs £43.70 to hire for the day, but its transport space is only 2.4 cubic meters, or 84 cubic feet. However, in order to qualify for the offer at Big Yellow, a customer would have to hire a self storage unit with a capacity of at least 245 cubic feet, as self storage units are typically around 7 feet high.
Obviously, in order to make use of this space they would need to fill it, which would take much more stuff than this van could accommodate in a single trip. Either they would need to make many trips between their home and the self storage centre – inconvenient and often impractical within a single day, especially if they are far apart – or the customer would end up having to short change himself by hiring additional vans just to take advantage of the one which was free.
Streetvan: The possible solution?
However, the part of these offers which is actually far more generous is the free membership and credit with Streetvan.
Streetvan is a company which hires vans in a different way to other firms. Customers ‘join’ Streetvan, at which point they are given a keycard and pin-number, after which they can purchase credit for their journeys.
The vans are parked in different places, nearly all around London (although there are also some in Brighton, Cambridge and Oxford), so all the customer has to do once they’ve booked the van the day before is drive-up in their own car, swipe their keycard to gain entry and enter their pin to gain control of it. They can even park their car in the space occupied by the van in most cases.
Streetvan is far more economical than these alternative types of van hire, partly because all its vans are the same size. The internal transport capacity of each one is 5.8 cubic metres, or 203 cubic feet.
This still isn’t enormous in self storage terms, but it works out far more economically than the other van hire options because it costs just £8.95 per hour, so if you only needed to move one van load and acted efficiently, you could do the whole job within Big Yellow’s £20 of free credit.
Free van hire lessons
The lessons to take from all this are that, firstly, thoroughly investigate any offer of free van hire and make sure it’s right for the size of unit you’re hiring, and that it wouldn’t be cheaper to do it another way.
Secondly, look at alternatives; Streetvan may be cheaper, or so could borrowing a van from someone you know. Do you even need a van? Maybe a few trips in car you already own is the way forward, as you won’t be subject to time limits and only have to pay the cost of petrol.
Finally, if you are moving house or transferring a large amount of stuff, reconcile yourself to the fact you need a large van, and it will be expensive to hire one – a large Luton Box Van, for example, could well be at least £100 per day.
4 Responses to “Self storage and free van hire”
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There is a solution to this dilemma. Get the self store to come to you.. Simples! See what I mean here. http://www.ajstephensonremovals.co.uk/essex-storage
Great article as usual!
You make a very valid point…’each with their own terms and conditions’…I can’t tell you how many customers we have had that get caught by these type of so called deals! My advise, always read the small print!
A great article and one we’ll link to. All very true in what your saying. These bigger companies are often affiliated with the storage services where many customers will find they will have to upgrade, or pay additional costs for a van equipped to move sufficient items for them.
Each company offers a slightly different package of free van hire, each with their own terms and conditions. Check out here: Van Hire St Albans