So... I rented a storage unit from while I was living with my mom. I moved out of the unit on August 7 - the manager on the property knew I was moving out that day, and after we'd emptied the unit I popped into the office to ask her if there was anything else she needed from me. She asked me if I'd removed my lock, I told her I had, and she said there was nothing else she needed.
A week or so later, I received a September invoice via e-mail for the unit. I tried to call the property where I'd rented, but the manager was out that day and apparently nobody else there could figure out if my account had been closed or not.
I called the main customer service number and was told that most likely the invoice was kicked out automatically before the system had been updated. I kind of filed it away in the back of my mind to check on later.
When I realized that yesterday was the 1st, I called again and was at least able to get someone to help me (not the property manager, who was the only person I'd dealt with). I was told that "my" unit had a lock on it and I was still in the system as the renter.
? I told him no, I moved ALL my stuff out and took MY lock off on the 7th. He said he would call his district manager and see what he wanted to do. I got a call back later and was told "well, what you need to do is take your lock off..." at which point I was about ready to explode. I reminded him that it was NOT my lock on the unit, and the reason that I am 100% sure of this is because my lock is currently on a smaller storage unit that I rented because my new apartment is too small to hold all my furniture.
He was (understandably) baffled, and said he'd talk to the DM again and see if he wanted him to cut off the lock. So he called me back this morning... they had cut the lock off and there was stuff in there and he wanted to know if I wanted him to dispose of it. I told him I didn't really care one way or the other, but that the person who put the stuff there might not be too happy about having it thrown away.
The only thing that makes sense to me is that someone rented a unit, and simply moved into the wrong space. Logical, don't you think?
So the "resolution" they came up with was to waive the $50 disposal fee (gee, thanks!) but to charge me for two days rental in September. Granted, two days comes out to $9, but when I'm living in a 550 square foot apartment and living paycheck to paycheck, I'll be damned if I'm going to give $9 for something that was in NO way my fault!!! I got the phone number for the DM and left him a message. Unfortunately he called me back while I was driving, but the gist of his voice mail was "I'm not saying you're lying, but we just have no way of knowing if this stuff is yours or not".
So, what you're saying is that you're calling me a liar. He said that if I go to the property and show them my lock then they will offer their humble apology and my account will be cleared. Are you freakin' kidding me?!?
While it might be fun to go and wave my lock in their faces (although the people who actually work at the property have always been very nice to me), the problem I have with this is that the lock that I took from THAT storage unit is of course currently keeping my possessions safe.
I'm tempted to take a video of myself unlocking the lock on my current unit, putting it on youtube, and e-mailing it to the DM.
I know it's only $9, but this has NOT been a good week, and it just really, really frustrated me today. I'm not really sweating it anyway, because the guy I initially talked to said they aren't going to go to collections on anything less than $25, but at this point it's the principal. NINE DOLLARS? Really?
I only wish I could be there when the person who mistakenly moved into my old unit discovers their stuff has been thrown away.
OK, rant over. But be warned - if you ever use storage, you may want to get a notarized letter to prove the date and time that you moved out, that the unit was empty and that you took your lock with you.
A week or so later, I received a September invoice via e-mail for the unit. I tried to call the property where I'd rented, but the manager was out that day and apparently nobody else there could figure out if my account had been closed or not.
When I realized that yesterday was the 1st, I called again and was at least able to get someone to help me (not the property manager, who was the only person I'd dealt with). I was told that "my" unit had a lock on it and I was still in the system as the renter.
He was (understandably) baffled, and said he'd talk to the DM again and see if he wanted him to cut off the lock. So he called me back this morning... they had cut the lock off and there was stuff in there and he wanted to know if I wanted him to dispose of it. I told him I didn't really care one way or the other, but that the person who put the stuff there might not be too happy about having it thrown away.
So the "resolution" they came up with was to waive the $50 disposal fee (gee, thanks!) but to charge me for two days rental in September. Granted, two days comes out to $9, but when I'm living in a 550 square foot apartment and living paycheck to paycheck, I'll be damned if I'm going to give $9 for something that was in NO way my fault!!! I got the phone number for the DM and left him a message. Unfortunately he called me back while I was driving, but the gist of his voice mail was "I'm not saying you're lying, but we just have no way of knowing if this stuff is yours or not".
While it might be fun to go and wave my lock in their faces (although the people who actually work at the property have always been very nice to me), the problem I have with this is that the lock that I took from THAT storage unit is of course currently keeping my possessions safe.
I know it's only $9, but this has NOT been a good week, and it just really, really frustrated me today. I'm not really sweating it anyway, because the guy I initially talked to said they aren't going to go to collections on anything less than $25, but at this point it's the principal. NINE DOLLARS? Really?
I only wish I could be there when the person who mistakenly moved into my old unit discovers their stuff has been thrown away.
OK, rant over. But be warned - if you ever use storage, you may want to get a notarized letter to prove the date and time that you moved out, that the unit was empty and that you took your lock with you.
