Short answer: it depends on the policy, and the differences are large enough to change what you buy. Three renters policy forms we read set three different rules for belongings in a storage unit: a percentage of your personal property limit with a $1,000 floor, a flat $1,000, and a percentage cap written for property at “a residence other than the residence premises.” Your own policy may match one of them or none.
Scope of this guide
On October 27, 2026 we read the storage, personal-property, peril, deductible and claim provisions of these forms:
- American Strategic Insurance Corp., form ASI HOR OK 09 21, an Oklahoma renters policy form published on the Oklahoma Insurance Department’s website.
- Lemonade Insurance Company, form LEM 04 05 23, using the published Colorado and Illinois sample policies.
- Allstate, renters policy AS373, a Texas form (it refers to the Texas Department of Insurance). The edition date is not shown.
Three forms are not a survey of the market. We did not read the ISO form that many insurers build on, and we have not seen any storage facility’s rental agreement or protection plan, so we say nothing here about what facilities require or offer. Where this article says “the ASI form” or “the Lemonade form,” it means exactly that document.
Three forms, three storage rules
| Form | Storage rule | Exceptions listed |
|---|---|---|
| ASI HOR OK 09 21 | Property “in a storage facility” (or usually at another residence of an insured) is covered up to 10% of the Coverage C limit or $1,000, whichever is greater. | Property moved out because the home is being repaired or rebuilt and is unfit to live in or store property in; property at a newly acquired principal residence for 30 days after you begin moving there. |
| Lemonade LEM 04 05 23 (CO, IL samples) | Property in a “self-storage facility” is limited to $1,000. A separate clause caps property usually located at another residence at 10% of Coverage C or $1,000, whichever is greater. | For self-storage: property moved out of a home under repair that is not fit to live in, and property usually located at another residence of an insured. |
| Allstate AS373 | Property at “a residence other than the residence premises” is limited to 10% of Coverage C. The passage we located is written for a residence; ask Allstate whether a storage unit falls within it. | A newly acquired principal residence for 30 days; student dormitory, fraternity or sorority housing. |
The ASI “whichever is greater” floor
Reading only the percentage misses part of the ASI rule. In the ASI form the $1,000 acts as a minimum, so a small policy gets $1,000 for stored items even when 10% of its limit would be less.
What the limit means in dollars (hypothetical)
These figures are made-up policy limits applied to the wording above. They show arithmetic, not what any insurer will pay.
| Coverage C limit | ASI-style: 10% or $1,000, greater | Lemonade-style: flat $1,000 |
|---|---|---|
| $8,000 | $1,000 (10% would be $800) | $1,000 |
| $15,000 | $1,500 | $1,000 |
| $30,000 | $3,000 | $1,000 |
| $50,000 | $5,000 | $1,000 |
Raising your overall personal property limit raises the storage limit under the first rule and does nothing under the second.
Worked example: theft from a unit, with a deductible
Suppose a renter has a $30,000 Coverage C limit and a $500 deductible, and $8,000 of furniture and equipment is stolen from a storage unit. Assume the theft is a covered peril and no special limit applies to the items.
- Under an ASI-style rule, the storage limit is $3,000.
- If the $500 deductible comes off the $8,000 loss first, the $7,500 result is still above the cap, so the payment is capped at $3,000.
- If instead the cap is applied first and the deductible comes off the capped amount, the payment is $2,500.
The two orders differ by the deductible. Which one applies depends on your policy’s loss-settlement wording, so ask your insurer how it applies. For reference, the Lemonade form says that, subject to the applicable limit of liability, it pays only the part of the total loss that exceeds the deductible, and the Allstate form says it pays the excess over the deductible unless the policy says otherwise.
Storage coverage scenario tool
Illustration only. This does simple arithmetic with the numbers you type. It does not know your policy and cannot predict what an insurer will pay. It assumes the cause of loss is covered and that no special limit (such as for jewelry or electronics) applies. Everything runs in your browser; nothing you enter is sent or saved.
Moving between homes
All three forms treat moves specially in some way: each lists a 30-day window at a newly acquired principal residence (in the Lemonade form, within its other-residence clause), and the ASI and Lemonade forms also exempt property moved out of a home under repair. None of the text we read addresses belongings put into storage directly from a former home between leases. Insurance professionals writing in a March 2026 trade-press discussion of a carrier that applied a 10% cap to such property did not all reach the same conclusion (see the source list). Ask your insurer how it would treat your situation.
Higher limits and special categories
Two further things can change the picture. First, a respondent in the trade-press discussion above noted that the limit could have been raised by endorsement. Ask your insurer whether any endorsement can raise the storage limit on your policy. Second, special limits for categories such as money, jewelry, firearms, electronics and similar items sit inside the Coverage C limit. In the ASI form, for example, money is limited to $250 and theft of some categories has its own cap. Business property is one to watch if you keep inventory or equipment in a unit: each form sets a separate, lower limit for property away from the residence premises that is used primarily for business, namely $250 in the ASI form, $1,500 in the Lemonade form and $200 in the Allstate form, each with exceptions we did not analyze. These can leave an item with less coverage than the storage limit alone suggests.
Before you rely on any of this
- Find the section of your policy that deals with property at other locations or in storage. Look for the words “storage facility,” “self-storage,” or “other residence.”
- Write down the dollar figure your declarations page shows for personal property, and work out the storage limit with the rule in your policy.
- Ask your insurer or agent in writing whether a unit you rent now, or plan to rent, is within that rule, and whether a higher limit is available.
- Keep a dated inventory of what is in the unit. The Wisconsin Office of the Commissioner of Insurance recommends a complete inventory of your belongings and reviewing it annually.
- Read your storage rental agreement. We have not verified what any facility requires, offers or disclaims.
Sources
All accessed October 27, 2026.
- American Strategic Insurance Corp., Your Renters Protection Policy, form ASI HOR OK 09 21 (published on the Oklahoma Insurance Department’s website): oid.ok.gov.
- Lemonade Insurance Company, sample policy form LEM 04 05 23 (Colorado, Illinois).
- Allstate, Renters Policy AS373: Allstate policy document.
- Wisconsin Office of the Commissioner of Insurance, PI-017 A Brief Guide to Renters Insurance (R 09/2026): oci.wi.gov.
- IA Magazine (Big I Virtual University), “Is Personal Property Stolen From a Storage Facility Subject to a 10% Limit?” March 27, 2026: iamagazine.com.