Most refrigerated container hire in the UK is built around long contracts. The headline rates — from around £12 a day ex VAT — assume a let running for months, and minimum terms of 90 days are common across the industry. If what you actually need is a fortnight of chilled space for a wedding, a festival bar or a Christmas stock overflow, that pricing model works against you. Short-term hire does exist, but it is a smaller market served by fewer suppliers, and it is priced differently. This page sets out how short lets work, what to budget for and how to give yourself the best chance of securing a unit for your dates. For contracts of several months or more, start from our main refrigerated container hire page instead.
Why 90-day minimums exist — and why short lets still happen
A refrigerated container is expensive to move. It arrives on a lorry, is lifted into place — typically by a lorry-mounted crane — and the same operation happens again at collection. Those costs are fixed whether you keep the unit for a week or a year, so suppliers naturally prefer long contracts, and many set a minimum term of around 90 days to protect the arithmetic.
That does not make short-term refrigerated container hire impossible. Some suppliers will quote for days or weeks, particularly around the events season, and the market for it is real: weddings, festivals, agricultural shows, seasonal production peaks. What it does mean is that a short let costs more per day than a long one — the fixed transport and handling costs are spread over fewer days. That is not profiteering; it is the ordinary logic of degressive pricing.
The practical consequence: do not ask a supplier “do you do short-term hire?” in the abstract. State your exact dates, the duration, the temperature you need and the delivery postcode. A supplier who would decline a vague enquiry will often quote for a specific, well-defined window.
What short-term hire costs
There is no published national tariff for short lets — suppliers price them individually. What can be said honestly is this: the figure of around £12 a day ex VAT you will see advertised is a long-term rate, and a short let will sit above it on a per-day basis. On top of the hire itself, budget for:
- Delivery and collection, charged for each movement;
- Electricity — roughly 70 to 170 kWh per day depending on unit size and set temperature, at your site’s rate;
- VAT at 20% on top of ex-VAT prices.
If your need comes back every season, it is worth comparing repeated short lets against ownership: a used refrigerated container typically trades at £4,500 to £7,500 ex VAT. Our used buying guide and listings cover what to check before going down that route.
Refrigerated container hire for events
Refrigerated container hire for events covers three recurring situations. Weddings and private functions: drinks, dairy, desserts and flowers that a domestic fridge cannot hold, usually a compact unit near the marquee. Cold storage for festivals: bar stock and traders’ produce across several days, where volume matters and the unit doubles as a secure store overnight. Catering overflow: a professional kitchen at capacity during a large function or a seasonal peak, with a container taking the surplus.
Sizing is the first decision:
| Size | Volume | Pallet capacity | Typical event use |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10ft | ≈ 15 m³ | 4–5 pallets | Wedding drinks and catering, small bars |
| 20ft | ≈ 28 m³ | 10–11 pallets | Festival bar stock, event catering |
| 40ft high cube | ≈ 67 m³ | 23 pallets | Large festivals, production catering |
Standard units operate from -25 °C to +25 °C, so the same container can run as a chiller one weekend and a freezer the next — useful when Christmas stock means frozen goods rather than chilled ones.
Container or fridge trailer?
For small events the natural alternative is a fridge trailer, and the comparison is straightforward. A trailer typically runs off a standard 13 A socket and can be towed into position — genuinely convenient on a domestic driveway or a tight site. What it cannot match is capacity or range: a 20ft refrigerated container holds 10 to 11 pallets, freezes down to -25 °C, and is a lockable steel box that shrugs off a week in a public field. The container’s price for that capability is logistics: it needs crane delivery, a firm level surface and a proper power supply. Neither option is “better”; the deciding factors are volume, temperature and what your site can accommodate.
Power on site
Most refrigerated containers need a three-phase 380/400 V supply via a 5-pin CEE 32 A plug; some smaller units run on single-phase 230 V. Power draw is 5 to 12 kW depending on the format, and consumption runs roughly 70 to 170 kWh per day by size and set point — a real line in an event budget. On a greenfield site with no mains, a generator can run the unit, provided it is sized for the job. Our power supply guide covers connectors, generator sizing considerations and common wiring mistakes.
Securing a unit for your dates
Availability for short lets genuinely varies — through the year and from supplier to supplier — and no honest comparison site can tell you in advance who will have a free unit on your weekend. What works is a precise enquiry: dates, duration, temperature, delivery postcode and site access (surface, overhead clearance for the crane). Tell us your dates in a quote request and we pass your enquiry to specialist suppliers, who contact you directly if they can meet your requirement. And if you are reading this because a cold room has just failed rather than because an event is coming, our emergency cold storage page deals with that scenario specifically.
Frequently asked questions
Can I hire a refrigerated container for just a few days or a weekend?
Sometimes. Many UK suppliers set minimum hire terms — 90 days is common — because delivery and collection costs are hard to recover on a short let. A smaller number will quote for days or weeks, particularly for events. Availability changes constantly, so the practical approach is to state your exact dates and duration in your enquiry and let suppliers respond if they can cover them.
How much does short-term refrigerated container hire cost in the UK?
Long-term hire starts from around £12 a day ex VAT, but that rate assumes a long contract. Short lets are priced higher per day, because transport and handling are spread over fewer days, and most suppliers quote them individually rather than publishing a tariff. Budget separately for delivery and collection, electricity, and VAT at 20%.
What power supply does a refrigerated container need at an event?
Most units run on a three-phase 380/400 V supply through a 5-pin CEE 32 A plug; some smaller units run on single-phase 230 V. Expect roughly 70 to 170 kWh per day depending on size and set temperature, with a power draw of 5 to 12 kW. If the site has no mains supply, a suitably sized generator can run the unit.
Is a fridge trailer better than a refrigerated container for a festival?
They solve different problems. A fridge trailer typically plugs into a standard 13 A socket and is easy to move, which suits small weddings and mobile catering. A refrigerated container offers far more capacity — a 20ft unit takes 10 to 11 pallets — plus freezing down to -25 °C and a lockable steel shell, but it needs proper power and a lorry-mounted crane to deliver.
Do I need ATP certification to use a refrigerated container at an event?
ATP applies to refrigerated transport, not to a container standing on a site as static cold storage, so it is not the relevant framework for event use. Food hygiene requirements are a separate matter: they vary with what you store and where you operate, so check what applies with your local environmental health team before the event.