Can I Sue a Storage Facility?

When you decide to leave your personal property at a storage facility, you assume that it will be safe from harm and theft. Sadly, this isn’t always the case.

Whether it’s due to water damage, theft, or a rodent infestation, your property may be in worse condition when you return to retrieve your items. Can you sue a public storage facility for the loss or damage to your property?

In this article, we’ll explain your rights regarding a rental agreement with a storage facility. We will also describe your options, up to and including filing a lawsuit for property damage or breach of contract.

If your property has suffered damage while in a public storage unit, contact a local attorney experienced in property damage or contract law to discuss your case. An experienced lawyer will assess your situation and advise on the best way to proceed.

Bad Things Can Happen With Any Storage Unit

Suppose you’re moving and need to rent a storage space for your antiques, important documents, and family heirlooms. You go to a local self-service storage facility and sign a rental agreement for a heated unit without reading all the details. You don’t bother getting renters’ insurance, thinking you won’t use the unit long enough to justify it. You give them a credit card and let them deduct the fee automatically each month.

Things are going well until you get an email from the facility saying that your unit may have been affected by a water leak. It turns out your unit and several others were flooded when a pipe inside your unit froze and burst. All of your property was ruined by the water damage. If you call a lawyer to learn about your legal options, the first thing they’ll ask you is to see your rental agreement.

Storage Rental Agreements

Your rental agreement will differ depending on the storage facility. Your state’s law governs its interpretation. It will contain some, most, or all the provisions discussed below.

There’s one thing common to all rental agreements: A lawyer wrote them for the storage facility. This means that the agreement probably contains many terms that benefit the facility. Let’s take a look at some of the possibilities:

Liens on Your Stored Property

The first is a lien on your property. Most states have statutes called something like the Self-Service Storage Facility Act. Under these statutes, self-storage companies have a lien (a property interest) on the property you store in the unit. If you fail to pay your rent, the storage facility may have the right to hold and sell your property at a public auction.

Your rental agreement confirms this right granted by state law and spells out what the facility owner can do if you fail to pay rent and it decides to exercise its right to sell your property. Lawyers call this process a lien sale or a foreclosure. A facility owner can keep the proceeds to cover unpaid rent, late fees, storage fees, and the costs of the sale.

If you’re up to date on your monthly rent, you haven’t broken (breached) the terms of the agreement.

Disclaimer of Warranties: Quality of Your Unit

Your agreement may also contain a disclaimer of warranties. Most rental agreements contain a provision stating that you take the storage unit on an as-is basis and that they make no warranties of any kind regarding the unit. What you see is what you get.

Most rental agreements require you to maintain the unit. If you fail to do so, you can be responsible for the costs of restoring it to its original condition.

Release of Liability: Legal Protection for the Storage Company

Most self-service storage rental agreements contain a release. A release means you give up your right to sue if the conditions of the release are met.

Again, the storage facility‘s lawyers draft the rental agreements, so the release is broad. In most instances, you give up the right to sue for any property damage or personal injury relating to your use and occupancy of the storage unit.

Your lawyer tells you that in your rental agreement, the disclaimer specifically states that the facility is not liable for any damage to your property, period. This doesn’t seem fair. The pipes wouldn’t have frozen unless the facility had known they could freeze and had failed to do what they should to prevent it, right?

Your lawyer tells you to hold that thought for a moment. At this point, they are telling you about the obstacles you face if you decide to sue.

Indemnification: You Can Be Sued, Too

Next is indemnification. Most rental agreements contain a provision that says that if the storage facility gets sued for any reason associated with your use and occupancy of the unit, you agree to pay for their legal costs, any judgments against them, and (often) their attorney’s fees. This is an indemnification provision.

You weren’t storing anyone else’s property in your unit and there were no injuries involved, so you don’t see how this provision applies in your situation. Your consumer protection lawyer says that this is true unless the storage facility takes the position that, as part of your responsibility to care for the unit, you should have ensured the thermostat was set high enough to prevent the pipe from freezing. They could argue that you have to indemnify (pay) them if the renters of the other flooded units, who would be creditors, sue them.

Limitation on Recovery

Most rental agreements contain a limitation on any potential recovery. For example, a rental agreement could say that in the event of any dispute with the storage facility, the amount you can recover in any lawsuit is capped.

Your lawyer says your rental agreement limits your recovery to $5,000. This would likely put you in small claims court, though the jurisdictional limit varies by state. Unfortunately, your family heirlooms, let alone the antiques, were worth a lot more than that.

Insurance Requirements To Store Property

Your lawyer asks you if you had any insurance on the unit. Most rental agreements specify that the storage facility does not maintain insurance on your unit, and that you must pay for it if you want coverage. Some agreements force you to get renters’ insurance on the unit.

They want to know whether you have renters’ insurance, since your agreement states that the storage facility doesn’t. This means that having insurance on the unit is your responsibility. If you have insurance, you’d be required to notify your insurance company of your potential claim immediately. Unfortunately, you didn’t get insurance. You didn’t think you would need the unit long enough to justify it.

Arbitration

Although your agreement doesn’t contain an arbitration provision, your lawyer says many rental contracts do. Arbitration is a legal process for resolving disputes out of court. You and the other side submit evidence and arguments to a neutral third party, who decides your dispute. Many believe arbitration is less expensive and more efficient than going to court.

Arbitration has pros and cons. You lose the right to have a jury of your peers decide your dispute. If it goes against you, appealing the arbitrator’s decision is often not permitted. In our example, you don’t have to deal with this challenge because your rental agreement doesn’t contain an arbitration provision.

Potential Legal Claims Against Storage Services

If this were an actual situation, you might be feeling a little queasy at this point. There’s nothing you can do to get your property back, and now your lawyer is telling you that you can’t even hold the storage facility responsible for your losses.

Your lawyer tells you that you shouldn’t give up all hope. You may have little luck with a breach of contract suit. If not, there are at least two other legal claims you can still bring against the facility.

Conversion (They Stole Your Stuff)

Conversion happens when someone wrongfully exercises control over your possessions, depriving you of their use. They “convert” your personal property to their own use.

Conversion is what’s called an intentional tort. You rejoice when your lawyer tells you that responsibility can’t be disclaimed in a contract for intentional torts. This means that despite the language in the rental agreement, you could still sue the facility for the conversion of your damaged antiques, documents, and heirlooms.

You would still face an uphill battle because of other language in the rental agreement, but a conversion claim could help you overcome the disclaimer hurdle. Proving a storage facility intentionally converted your property can be difficult, as conversion requires showing deliberate or knowing conduct.

Gross Negligence

The second claim you may be able to bring is for gross negligence. Negligence is the failure to use reasonable care under the circumstances, while gross negligence involves a more severe degree of carelessness or reckless disregard

Gross negligence differs depending on the state in which you live, but consider it as a willful or conscious indifference to the risks associated with conduct that causes harm. It usually requires more than simple carelessness to prove that the facility acted with reckless disregard for safety.

As with conversion, you can’t disclaim responsibility for gross negligence under a contract. You still have to deal with the other limitations of the rental agreement, but gross negligence could also get you past the disclaimers.

What To Do if Your Property Is Damaged While in a Storage Unit

It can be frustrating to arrive at your storage unit only to find your property damaged or destroyed. Regardless of the type of property you have in storage, it has some value, whether financial or sentimental.

It’s important that you understand what to do immediately after discovering the damage. You can take the proactive steps below to protect your interests.

Assess and Document the Damage

It’s not enough to notice the damage. It’s imperative that you assess any visible damage right away. You can do this by taking photos or videos of the unit and its contents. You should also document the conditions of the unit and describe the specific damage to your property.

Notify the Storage Facility

Most storage companies have strict policies about reporting property damage. Rather than run the risk of not complying with these policies, notify the facility manager immediately after you discover the damage to your unit and its contents. You’ll want to provide the company with written notice to avoid any dispute about what you told them or when you submitted your documentation. Make sure you include detailed information about the damage, as well as any information about what caused it. For example, if you notice water damage, notify the storage facility of the alleged source. The same is true if you discover damage caused by fire or another unnatural source.

Ask the Storage Facility Manager for an Incident Report

Each storage company has its own unique policy about property damage, including a detailed incident report. It’s not sufficient to provide the company with a written description of the damage. You must submit a completed copy of the facility’s incident report if you want to recover compensation for your damaged items.

Retain Documentation for Your Records

If the storage company does not agree to compensate you for your property damage, you may need to take further action. This is why it’s critical that you retain a copy of the documentation you submit to the storage facility‘s managers. Include a list of the damaged items, their value, and the source of the damage (if known). You’ll need to provide this information to the insurance company if you file a claim.

Contact the Insurance Company

Once you’ve given the storage facility a chance to resolve the issue, file an insurance claim. Include a detailed description of the damage along with a copy of the information you provided to the storage facility. Depending on your insurance coverage, you may need to pursue legal action against the storage facility.

A lawsuit may be your best option if the insurance company denies your claim or the insurance policy doesn’t cover your total loss.

When Does It Make Sense To Sue a Storage Facility?

You can sue somebody for any reason, but that doesn’t mean you have a legitimate case. Once you decide to seek legal representation, schedule your free initial consultation. During this meeting, your attorney will answer any legal questions you have. They will also advise you as to whether you have a valid claim for damages.

The reason you sue another party is so that you can recover compensation (damages) for your losses. Just because you can sue a storage facility doesn’t mean you should. You’ll want to ensure that your legal issue warrants legal action. Losses from a flood would likely be covered by insurance, while damage caused by vermin might be met with claims by the storage facility manager that the mice came in with your items. Regardless of the situation, an attorney will examine the particular details of your case and explain your options. This can include filing a lawsuit.

There are times when your only real option for recovery is to sue the storage facility. For example, if your attorney is confident they can prove that the company was negligent in providing reasonable security systems, you stand a better chance of receiving compensation.

Some other situations in which you may succeed in suing the storage facility owners include:

• The storage facility failed to comply with the terms of your rental agreement, such as a denial of access to your unit, which resulted in property damage
• The company fails to maintain its units, allowing them to become faulty, dirty, or otherwise insufficient to keep your property safe
• If the managers don’t respond to water or fire damage in a responsible manner, it may lead to significant damage to your personal property
• If the storage facility fails to install the necessary security measures to prevent and deter theft, you may have a claim for damages

The only reason to sue a storage facility is if you have a good shot at winning. You don’t want to waste your time and energy pursuing a lawsuit that has little chance of success.

Speak With an Attorney for More Information

Most rental agreements favor self-service storage facilities, not renters. If you believe a storage facility is responsible for damage to your property, seek legal advice from an attorney experienced in property damage personal injury cases or contract law. They can provide the legal help you need to determine whether to pursue a claim against the storage facility and its owners.