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Short answer: Insurance has risen faster than any other storage expense. Ideas Mark took from insurance specialist Terry Campbell: consider a master policy if you own several facilities, upgrade security, use an agent who understands self-storage, insure at a realistic value, require tenant insurance, and reduce liability risks, which drive the biggest claims.
Ways to keep premiums down #
- Master policy. Owners with more than one facility, especially in different regions, can explore a single master policy. Carriers like the spread of risk and often quote lower rates.
- Security features. Fencing, gates, cameras, code-entry doors on interior hallways and smart locks can all help. Consider insurance when renovating or opening a facility.
- The right agent. An agent who doesn’t understand storage can lead you to over-insure, or you may be under-insured if you still carry the value from when you built years ago. Keep insured values in line with current construction costs.
- One agent, competitive bids. Campbell’s (counterintuitive) suggestion: have one good agent take your account to market and get carriers to rebid against each other, rather than many agents approaching the same carriers.
- Tenant insurance. Carriers see it as another layer of protection.
- Safety. The biggest claims are liability, not weather. Keep gutters clear so water doesn’t back up into units, keep sidewalks even and salted in winter, walk screw-down roofs and replace bad screws at least twice a year, and watch for hazards.
Talk with a licensed insurance professional about what fits your facilities.
Related answers #
- What insurance riders and deductibles should self-storage owners consider?
- Should self-storage facilities make tenant insurance mandatory?
- How can self-storage owners control operating expenses?
Source: Mark’s post Insurance Shock: How Self-Storage Owners Can Fight Back in 2026
