The Australian index of self-storage
Independent reviews of Australian self-storage — real costs, contract terms, access rules, and how facilities treat people when life doesn't go to plan. Reviewed against one public methodology. Free for the public.
Free for you. Always. Funded independently — facilities can't pay for a score, and every facility has a right of reply.
Our founder, Elizabeth Wilson — a single mum who was going through a separation — says this is what happened to her at Wilson Storage South Melbourne (“Wilsons Storage”).
5 days overdue. She told them she'd lost her job. She asked them to release her goods — she'd pay the balance off on a payment plan. She had never missed a payment before this. She says she wasn't let in.
42 days overdue. This email arrived:
Her child's brand-new toys were inside. Her business stock was inside. Her life was inside.
“Not my decision,” she says she was told — again and again, all the way up to a national operations manager. Her offer never changed: release the goods — she understood they needed the space back — and she would pay the balance down on a plan. The answer, she says, never changed either: no authority to release her stock, and fees compounding until the account was paid. “This is how we operate,” she says he told her.
To Elizabeth, it felt like being held to ransom.
Elizabeth's story — short film. Dramatisation; events as Elizabeth describes them.
No one should learn how a storage company treats people only after their life is locked behind its roller door. That is why this site exists.
This section describes Elizabeth's personal experience and reflects her honest account of events as she understood them. Wilson Storage may see these events differently and is welcome to respond — any response will be published in full alongside this account. See our Right of Reply policy. If money pressure is part of your situation, free financial counselling is available on 1800 007 007 (National Debt Helpline).
Find storage facilities and plain-English guides for your area — with the fees and contract terms the brochures leave out.
See every facility scored on the same twelve public criteria — from price transparency to how customers are treated when they fall behind.
Pick with confidence, knowing what the contract says, what access you'll have, and what your options are if life changes.
Scored against one public methodology — price transparency, contracts, access, communication and more.
Compare facilities →
Calm, practical steps: what to document, what to ask in writing, how to negotiate, and where to get help.
Read the guide →
Twelve criteria, every score shown, gaps marked honestly. Payment never touches a score.
See the methodology →
Start here. Our plain-English guides cover the situations nobody plans for: being unable to access your unit, falling behind on fees, hardship and payment plans, threats that your goods may be sold, and how to document everything as you go.
If money pressure is part of it, the National Debt Helpline (1800 007 007) offers free financial counselling — and if you're not safe at home, 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732) is there around the clock.
Storage reviews usually capture move-in day. The next customer needs to know the rest: what the fees really added up to, how the facility handled a missed payment, what moving out was like. If you've used a storage facility in Australia, a few honest minutes from you becomes the page someone desperately searches for at 2am.
Facts, dates and written communication help most. We treat your contact details as confidential, and we never publish accusations we can't stand behind.