diff --git a/src/neuron/container/soa_identifier.hpp b/src/neuron/container/soa_identifier.hpp
index 8ef76c8158..f4e7b105dc 100644
--- a/src/neuron/container/soa_identifier.hpp
+++ b/src/neuron/container/soa_identifier.hpp
@@ -84,29 +84,47 @@ struct owning_identifier {
         : owning_identifier(storage.acquire_owning_identifier()) {}
 
     owning_identifier(const owning_identifier&) = delete;
-    owning_identifier(owning_identifier&& other) = default;
+    owning_identifier(owning_identifier&& other) {
+        m_ptr = std::move(other.m_ptr);
+        other.m_ptr = nullptr;
+
+        m_data_ptr = other.m_data_ptr;
+        other.m_data_ptr = nullptr;
+    }
 
     owning_identifier& operator=(const owning_identifier&) = delete;
-    owning_identifier& operator=(owning_identifier&&) = default;
+    owning_identifier& operator=(owning_identifier&& other) {
+        destroy();
+
+        m_ptr = std::move(other.m_ptr);
+        other.m_ptr = nullptr;
+
+        m_data_ptr = other.m_data_ptr;
+        other.m_data_ptr = nullptr;
+
+        return *this;
+    }
 
-    ~owning_identifier() = default;
+    ~owning_identifier() {
+        destroy();
+    }
 
     /**
      * @brief Return a reference to the container in which this entry lives.
      */
     Storage& underlying_storage() {
-        return *m_ptr.get_deleter().m_data_ptr;
+        return *m_data_ptr;
     }
 
     /**
      * @brief Return a const reference to the container in which this entry lives.
      */
     Storage const& underlying_storage() const {
-        return *m_ptr.get_deleter().m_data_ptr;
+        return *m_data_ptr;
     }
 
     [[nodiscard]] operator non_owning_identifier<Storage>() const {
-        return {const_cast<Storage*>(&underlying_storage()), m_ptr.get()};
+        return {m_data_ptr, m_ptr};
     }
 
     [[nodiscard]] operator non_owning_identifier_without_container() const {
@@ -132,58 +150,67 @@ struct owning_identifier {
 
   private:
     owning_identifier() = default;
-    struct deleter {
-        deleter() = default;
-        deleter(Storage& data_container)
-            : m_data_ptr{&data_container} {}
-        void operator()(std::size_t* p) const {
-            assert(m_data_ptr);
-            auto& data_container = *m_data_ptr;
-            assert(p);
-            // We should still be a valid reference at this point.
-            assert(*p < data_container.size());
-            // Prove that the bookkeeping works.
-            assert(data_container.at(*p) == p);
-            bool terminate{false};
-            // Delete the corresponding row from `data_container`
-            try {
-                data_container.erase(*p);
-            } catch (std::exception const& e) {
-                // Cannot throw from unique_ptr release/reset/destructor, this
-                // is the best we can do. Most likely what has happened is
-                // something like:
-                //   auto const read_only_token = node_data.issue_frozen_token();
-                //   list_of_nodes.pop_back();
-                // which tries to delete a row from a container in read-only mode.
-                std::cerr << "neuron::container::owning_identifier<"
-                          << cxx_demangle(typeid(Storage).name())
-                          << "> destructor could not delete from the underlying storage: "
-                          << e.what() << " [" << cxx_demangle(typeid(e).name())
-                          << "]. This is not recoverable, aborting." << std::endl;
-                terminate = true;
-            }
-            if (terminate) {
-                std::terminate();
-            }
-            // We don't know how many people know the pointer `p`, so write a sentinel
-            // value to it and transfer ownership "elsewhere".
-            *p = invalid_row;
-            // This is to provide compatibility with NEURON's old nrn_notify_when_double_freed and
-            // nrn_notify_when_void_freed methods.
-            detail::notify_handle_dying(p);
-            // This is sort-of formalising a memory leak. In principle we could cleanup
-            // identifier_defer_delete_storage by scanning all our data structures and finding
-            // references to the pointers that it contains. In practice it seems unlikely that
-            // either this, or using std::shared_ptr just to avoid it, would be worth it.
-            if (detail::identifier_defer_delete_storage) {
-                detail::identifier_defer_delete_storage->emplace_back(p);
-            } else {
-                delete p;
-            }
+
+    void destroy() {
+        if (!m_ptr) {
+            // Nothing to be done.
+            return;
+        }
+
+        assert(m_data_ptr);
+        auto& data_container = *m_data_ptr;
+
+        // We should still be a valid reference at this point.
+        assert(m_ptr);
+        assert(*m_ptr < data_container.size());
+
+        // Prove that the bookkeeping works.
+        assert(data_container.at(*m_ptr) == m_ptr);
+
+        bool terminate = false;
+        // Delete the corresponding row from `data_container`
+        try {
+            data_container.erase(*m_ptr);
+        } catch (std::exception const& e) {
+            // Cannot throw from unique_ptr release/reset/destructor, this
+            // is the best we can do. Most likely what has happened is
+            // something like:
+            //   auto const read_only_token = node_data.issue_frozen_token();
+            //   list_of_nodes.pop_back();
+            // which tries to delete a row from a container in read-only mode.
+            std::cerr << "neuron::container::owning_identifier<"
+                      << cxx_demangle(typeid(Storage).name())
+                      << "> destructor could not delete from the underlying storage: " << e.what()
+                      << " [" << cxx_demangle(typeid(e).name())
+                      << "]. This is not recoverable, aborting." << std::endl;
+            terminate = true;
+        }
+        if (terminate) {
+            std::terminate();
         }
-        Storage* m_data_ptr{};
-    };
-    std::unique_ptr<std::size_t, deleter> m_ptr;
+        // We don't know how many people know the pointer `p`, so write a sentinel
+        // value to it and transfer ownership "elsewhere".
+        set_current_row(invalid_row);
+
+        // This is to provide compatibility with NEURON's old nrn_notify_when_double_freed and
+        // nrn_notify_when_void_freed methods.
+        detail::notify_handle_dying(m_ptr);
+
+        // This is sort-of formalising a memory leak. In principle we could cleanup
+        // identifier_defer_delete_storage by scanning all our data structures and finding
+        // references to the pointers that it contains. In practice it seems unlikely that
+        // either this, or using std::shared_ptr just to avoid it, would be worth it.
+        if (detail::identifier_defer_delete_storage) {
+            detail::identifier_defer_delete_storage->emplace_back(m_ptr);
+        } else {
+            delete m_ptr;
+        }
+    }
+
+
+    size_t* m_ptr = nullptr;
+    Storage* m_data_ptr{};
+
     template <typename, typename...>
     friend struct soa;
     void set_current_row(std::size_t new_row) {
@@ -198,8 +225,9 @@ struct owning_identifier {
      * be used without great care.
      */
     owning_identifier(Storage& storage, std::size_t row)
-        : m_ptr{new std::size_t, storage} {
-        *m_ptr = row;
-    }
+        : m_ptr(new size_t)
+        , m_data_ptr(&storage) {
+          *m_ptr = row;
+        }
 };
 }  // namespace neuron::container