Self storage FAQ

We collect from your home whatever you have too much of right now: boxes, but also furniture, bikes and bulky items, which we take as they are. We keep it in our warehouse and bring it back when you want it. You book online in minutes: you say how much space you need, pick the pickup date and indicate how long you expect to store your belongings. You book and pay for redelivery later, when you need it.

We operate in the provinces of Milan, Monza and Brianza, Lodi, Pavia, Piacenza, Cremona, Como, Lecco, Bergamo, Brescia, Novara, Varese, and Florence: we pick up and redeliver to any address in these provinces, furniture and upstairs pickups included. From anywhere else in Italy you can book the basic pickup online: only closed boxes and suitcases, up to 20 kg each, on the ground floor or at the concierge; we keep them in our Milan warehouse and redeliver them whenever you like, even one at a time. Further afield we ship furniture, bulky items and boxes, in Italy and abroad, even if you don't already have anything in storage with us: write to us at info@smoves.it and we'll quote you. More Italian cities are coming soon: write to us and we'll let you know as soon as we open in yours.

There is no maximum: the monthly rate renews month after month until you ask us for redelivery. When you book you choose whether to stay with no commitment, or commit to a number of months in exchange for a discount on the pickup: the quote shows you what each option costs before you decide.

When you want your things back you just ask — from your account or by writing to info@smoves.it — and we agree the redelivery date together, which you book and pay for at that point. From the redelivery the monthly rate is no longer charged: there is nothing to cancel and no penalty. If you chose a fixed-term option and close before the term ends, the discount you had on the pickup falls away and we settle it with you.

You pick the size when you book. When your things reach the warehouse we measure the space they actually take up: if they take up less space than you picked, the rate goes down to the real size; if they take up more, it goes up. Either way we write to you within two working days, with photos. That is why it pays to pick it carefully at the start with the space calculator, which already includes a margin for stacking. If you later need more or less space, write to us at info@smoves.it and we'll look at it together.

You pay a monthly rate for the square meters you take up: it starts at 1 m², and the rate is fixed per size. The rate covers storage in the warehouse. On top, once at the start, you pay the pickup and the transport to the warehouse. The pickup price covers the stop at your place, not all the loading work: any time beyond that is shown as an estimate before you book and settled on the actual time, at €29 an hour per person VAT included. If you commit to more months, the discount goes on the pickup, not on the rate. Redelivery is not included: you book it from your account when you need it and pay for it then. Redelivery is worked out with the same engine as the pickup, at full price (the duration discount applies to the pickup only), and it depends on the day you pick, which you see before confirming. The base insurance limit is included in the rate. Paid separately, only if you ask for them: a higher limit (a monthly amount), packing materials and, on a quote, packing done by us and furniture disassembly. The online quote shows you the rate and the pickup before you book.

When you book, you save your card. The pickup and the first month are charged five working days before the pickup; if the pickup is sooner than that, or you ask for packing materials as soon as possible, you pay them straight away. After that the monthly rate is charged to the same card every month, until you ask us for redelivery. You pay online via Stripe, by credit or debit card, Apple Pay or Google Pay, and every charge comes with an email receipt.

Normally we don't accept this payment method, but if card isn't an option for you, email us at info@smoves.it or use the Support page and we'll see whether we can arrange a custom cash payment for you.

The first charge covers the pickup, the first monthly rate, the first month of insurance if you raised the limit, and any extras, such as packing materials or extra working time estimated up front. It goes out five working days before the pickup, or straight away if the pickup is sooner. Some days cost more, for example those very close to today: you see it on the calendar. The quote shows you these charges, line by line, before you confirm. Work on site beyond the stop is not included: we tell you up front, and it is settled on the actual time. What you don't pay now is the redelivery: you book it from your account when you need it, and pay for it then.

A fixed term is a deal that runs both ways: you stay for that number of months, we discount your pickup. The discount is tied to the commitment: you had all of it at the start, on the pickup, so if you take your things back before the term ends it falls away and we settle it with you. If you'd rather not commit there's the no-commitment option: no discount on the pickup, and you close whenever you like. You pick in the quote, with both totals in front of you.

Until you complete the booking you can change anything in the quote. After that: Once booked, the pickup cannot be canceled. The date can be moved, though: the first move carries no penalty if you tell us at least 48 hours ahead. From the second one, or if you tell us later than that, you pay 30% of the pickup price. Either way, if the new day costs more (a Sunday, or shorter notice) you pay the difference, and you see it before confirming. If at the pickup we find neither you nor someone you delegated, and you had not told us, the pickup is still due and we work out the new date together: write to us at info@smoves.it. You request the redelivery from your account or by writing to info@smoves.it, with at least 48 hours' notice: we set the date and the address together with the request, and they move the same way. The new address can be anywhere in our service area. If you need your belongings at an address further away, elsewhere in Italy or abroad, we ship them on a quote.

You choose the day in the booking form, with a time slot between 9:00 and 18:00: the dates and slots you see are genuinely available, and the pickup confirms itself when you complete the booking. On the chosen day we come by within the agreed slot. At the pickup you, or someone you delegated (a relative, a flatmate, the concierge), need to be there with everything ready: whoever is there signs the pickup report.

Redelivery takes place at an address in the province of Milan — the same as the pickup or a different one, as you prefer — on the day and time slot you agree on. You ask for it from your account or by writing to us, with at least 48 hours' notice, and you move it the same way if you change your mind. Outside the province, elsewhere in Italy or abroad, we ship on a quote.

You can have just some of your belongings brought back and leave the rest in storage. You ask for it like a full redelivery — from your account or by writing to info@smoves.it, with at least 48 hours' notice — with one difference: there is no dedicated button for a partial redelivery, so you tell us what you want back and we arrange it together. Whatever you don't ask for stays in the warehouse, under the same contract.

If you pack yourself, you order the materials while you book, when you choose the pickup day: we ask whether you need them and suggest a kit based on your items or the size, which you can change. There is the small box (€3.99), the large box (€5.99), tape (€3.99), FRAGILE tape (€5.99), bubble wrap (€11.99) and the wardrobe box (€29), all VAT included, with no minimum order. We bring them to your door for €29 VAT included, before the pickup: as soon as possible, within a few working days, or a few days before the pickup, whichever you prefer. They are paid at the start, together with the pickup and the first month; if you want them as soon as possible, the charge goes through straight away. If instead you have no time to pack, we do it on pickup day, with our own materials: you pay for the time, estimated up front.

The size you pick is the floor area, not the box: the list runs from 1 to 30 m², and the space calculator tells you which one you fall into. If you need materials, the boxes we bring you are 40 × 30 × 30 cm, 60 × 40 × 40 cm and the wardrobe box; bulky items need no box at all, we collect them as they are. Maximum weight 20 kg per box, because one person lifts it.

Use sturdy boxes and seal them well with strong tape. Spread the weight and don't overload them: the maximum is 20 kg per box. No boxes? You order them while you book, and we bring them before the pickup. If you have no time to pack, we do it, on a quote: you pay for the time, estimated up front. We apply the labels at pickup: just write your name and a number by hand.

Clothes, books, linens, shoes, backpacks, sports gear and common household items. Still forbidden: cash and valuables, jewelry, original personal documents (passport, ID card, driving license, wills, original degree certificates — document archives are allowed instead), damaged, swollen or tampered batteries, fine art and valuable collectibles, medicines, food and drinks, liquids, flammable or hazardous materials, weapons, plants and animals, motor vehicles, and anything dirty, wet or illegal. Allowed instead, under conditions: fragile items if well packed and flagged at pickup, appliances if unplugged, emptied and clean, and battery-powered devices — from a laptop to an electric scooter — if in good condition, switched off and with an intact battery. If in doubt, message us before pickup.

Yes, and you don't have to wrap them: we collect them as they are. If a piece won't fit through the door in one piece, we take it apart, on a quote. The space calculator has a list of items — from a box to a sofa, from a bike to a musical instrument — and works out how many square meters you need. If there is even one piece of furniture in the load the plan starts at 2 m² instead of 1: furniture doesn't stack, it takes up its own footprint on the floor. And if you have anything over 25 kg, or that one person can't move alone, flag it when you book: we send a two-person crew.

Your boxes stay in a secure facility. Every box is checked at pickup, uniquely labeled and logged in our system; the facility is indoor, dry and access-controlled.

The insurance covers your belongings for the period they spend in STORAGE: if something happens, we compensate the loss you can prove, up to the limit you chose. The base limit is included in the monthly rate; if you need a higher one, you raise it for a monthly amount. During carriage the carrier's statutory liability applies instead (art. 1696 of the Italian Civil Code, one euro per kilogram of gross weight). If you have high-value items, message us before pickup and we'll agree how to handle them.