Quick answer
A dock shelter is a frame-and-curtain enclosure fitted around a loading bay door that closes the gap between the building and a reversed-in trailer, keeping out weather and holding in heat or cold during loading. Retractable shelters fold back on impact; inflatable shelters seal tightly around the trailer when inflated; foam seals compress against it. Guide prices £2,195 to £5,495 ex VAT for a retractable shelter and £6,495 to £11,995 for an inflatable one.
What does a dock shelter do?
A dock shelter closes the gap that is left around a trailer once it has reversed up to a loading bay. With the dock door open and nothing around the trailer, wind, rain and cold air pour into the building and heated or chilled air pours out. A shelter wraps the back of the trailer with curtains or pads so goods move from vehicle to warehouse in a sheltered, near-sealed space.
That protects goods and staff from the weather, reduces heat loss and draughts through open dock doors, helps maintain temperature in chilled and frozen operations, and improves security by limiting gaps around the trailer. It also makes the dock a more comfortable place to work in winter, which is no small thing on a busy site.
Retractable, inflatable or foam: which is right?
The right shelter depends on your fleet and how tightly you need to seal.
- Retractable shelters have a steel or aluminium frame on spring-loaded scissor arms carrying PVC side and top curtains. The curtains drape against the trailer, and if a driver reverses too far the frame folds back instead of breaking. They suit mixed fleets and are the most common choice.
- Inflatable shelters have air bags along the sides and top that inflate once the trailer is parked, pressing against it for a much tighter seal. They suit cold stores, pharmaceutical and food operations, and mixed fleets where a good seal matters.
- Foam seals are compressible pads that the trailer pushes into. They give an excellent seal where vehicles are all a similar size, but they wear quickly if trailers vary or reverse heavily.
How is a shelter sized to your vehicles?
A shelter is sized by matching its curtains and projection to the widths and heights of the vehicles that call, because it is only as good as its fit. The side curtains must reach the trailer sides across the range of vehicle widths that call, and the top curtain must drop low enough to meet the trailer roof without being torn by taller vehicles. The shelter projection, how far it stands out from the wall, must suit the dock and the trailers' rear doors, which open inside the shelter on most designs.
On survey we record the vehicles you receive, from vans and rigid lorries to articulated trailers and double-deckers, together with dock height and door size, and we check what the shelter will fix to. Getting this wrong leaves gaps on narrow vehicles or curtains ripped on tall ones. Guide stripes on the curtains and wheel guides on the apron help drivers line up centrally, which extends the life of the shelter as well as improving the seal.
Do shelters work with dock levellers and doors?
Yes, shelters work with most levellers and dock doors, and they perform far better when the three are planned together. The shelter frame sits around the dock door, the leveller sits in front of the door at dock height, and bumpers stop the trailer at the right distance so the shelter curtains seal without the vehicle hitting the building. If the bumpers are too thin or worn, trailers reverse into the wall and shelter frames take damage they were never designed for.
On a new or refurbished bay, we specify door, dock leveller, shelter, bumpers and lights as one package. For the wider layout, including apron gradients and the spacing between bays, our guide to loading bay design covers the main decisions.
What does a dock shelter cost and how long does it last?
Our guide prices are £2,195 to £5,495 ex VAT for a retractable dock shelter and £6,495 to £11,995 for an inflatable shelter, supplied and fitted. Size, frame type, curtain specification, accessories such as gutters and guide lights, and the fixing substrate all affect the figure. Foam seals are priced on survey because they depend closely on the vehicle mix.
Curtains are the main wear item: they scuff, tear and fade, especially where drivers reverse off-centre. Replacement curtains can usually be fitted to an existing frame, which costs much less than a new shelter. Inflatable shelters also need their blowers and bags checked, and a planned service picks up worn curtains before gaps open up. Installation is typically half a day to a day per shelter.
At a glance
- Types
- Retractable (scissor-arm) shelters, rigid-frame shelters, inflatable shelters and compressible foam seals
- Curtains
- Heavy-duty PVC-coated polyester side and top curtains, with optional guide stripes
- Retraction
- Spring-loaded scissor arms let the frame fold back if a trailer strikes it
- Inflatable
- Electric blower inflates side and top bags around the trailer once it is parked
- Foam seals
- PVC-covered foam pads compressed by the trailer for a tight seal on uniform fleets
- Sizing
- Matched to the dock door size, vehicle widths and heights, and dock height
- Accessories
- Rain gutters, guide lights, wear pads, bumpers and wheel guides
Guide prices
| Item | Guide price (ex VAT) |
|---|---|
| Dock shelter (retractable) | £2,195 – £5,495 |
| Inflatable dock shelter | £6,495 – £11,995 |
Guide prices for supply and installation unless stated, excluding VAT, which is added at the current rate where it applies. Your fixed price is confirmed in writing after a survey, before any work starts.
What we check on the survey
- Dock door size, dock height and the wall around the opening
- Vehicle types, widths and heights, including vans and double-deck trailers
- Whether trailer doors open inside the shelter
- Temperature requirements inside the building
- Condition and thickness of dock bumpers
- Guide lights, wheel guides and rain gutter needs
Dock shelters and seals: frequently asked questions
Can a dock shelter be fitted to an existing loading bay?
Yes. Most shelters are retrofitted to existing bays, fixed to the wall or a steel frame around the dock door. We check the wall can take the fixings and that bumpers are in good condition before fitting, as both affect how well the shelter performs and how long it lasts.
Can worn shelter curtains be replaced?
Yes. Side and top curtains are replaceable on most retractable shelters, and replacing them costs much less than a new shelter. Curtains are usually made to measure, so we record the frame size and type on the first visit and order to suit.
Is an inflatable shelter worth the extra cost?
For cold stores, chilled food, pharmaceuticals and sites where temperature or contamination matters, an inflatable shelter's tighter seal is often worth it. For ambient warehouses with mixed fleets, a retractable shelter usually gives a good balance of seal, durability and cost.
What happens if a lorry hits the shelter?
Retractable shelters are designed to fold back on impact and spring back afterwards, so minor knocks rarely cause damage. Heavy or repeated impacts can still bend arms or tear curtains, which is why bumpers, wheel guides and guide lights are worth fitting alongside the shelter.
Areas we cover for dock shelters and seals
We cover England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland; islands and remote sites by arrangement. Choose your area for local details and the law that applies there.
England
- Bedfordshire
- Berkshire
- Bristol
- Buckinghamshire
- Cambridgeshire
- Cheshire
- Cornwall
- County Durham
- Cumbria
- Derbyshire
- Devon
- Dorset
- East Riding of Yorkshire
- East Sussex
- Essex
- Gloucestershire
- Greater London
- Greater Manchester
- Hampshire
- Herefordshire
- Hertfordshire
- Isle of Wight
- Kent
- Lancashire
- Leicestershire
- Lincolnshire
- Merseyside
- Norfolk
- North Yorkshire
- Northamptonshire
- Northumberland
- Nottinghamshire
- Oxfordshire
- Rutland
- Shropshire
- Somerset
- South Yorkshire
- Staffordshire
- Suffolk
- Surrey
- Tyne and Wear
- Warwickshire
- West Midlands
- West Sussex
- West Yorkshire
- Wiltshire
- Worcestershire
Wales
Scotland
- Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire
- Angus and Dundee
- Argyll and Bute
- Ayrshire
- Dumfries and Galloway
- Edinburgh and the Lothians
- Fife
- Forth Valley
- Glasgow
- Highlands and Islands
- Lanarkshire
- Perth and Kinross
- Renfrewshire and Dunbartonshire
- Scottish Borders
Northern Ireland
Last updated 19 October 2026.