How do I file a suit against a self storage in Iowa for getting rid of my units contents due to late payment?

[adjusterjack]

How much in monetary value are you talking about? Understand that it's the "used" value that I'm referring to. You'd only be entitled to the depreciated value of the used items. Household goods, appliances, furnishings, consumer electronics are generally valued at garage sale prices or, at best, Craigslist prices.

The small claims limit in Iowa is $6500. That's where you'll have to file your lawsuit. You don't get paid for your travel or lost earnings during the pursuit of the lawsuit. And if you need a lawyer you generally don't get your lawyer fees unless your contract specified that winner gets lawyer fees.

You also need to be aware of the statute of limitations for lawsuits. It's 5 years for breach of an oral contract which I don't think applies since you breached it by not paying. I think that violation of a statutory requirement is a tort and you have 2 years for that. If the loss of your property occurred in early 2017 you don't have much time to sit on this.

 

[tigerstrike]

How much in monetary value are you talking about? Understand that it's the "used" value that I'm referring to. You'd only be entitled to the depreciated value of the used items. Household goods, appliances, furnishings, consumer electronics are generally valued at garage sale prices or, at best, Craigslist prices.

The small claims limit in Iowa is $6500. That's where you'll have to file your lawsuit. You don't get paid for your travel or lost earnings during the pursuit of the lawsuit. And if you need a lawyer you generally don't get your lawyer fees unless your contract specified that winner gets lawyer fees.

You also need to be aware of the statute of limitations for lawsuits. It's 5 years for breach of an oral contract which I don't think applies since you breached it by not paying. I think that violation of a statutory requirement is a tort and you have 2 years for that. If the loss of your property occurred in early 2017 you don't have much time to sit on this.

How much in monetary value are you talking about? Understand that it's the "used" value that I'm referring to. You'd only be entitled to the depreciated value of the used items. Household goods, appliances, furnishings, consumer electronics are generally valued at garage sale prices or, at best, Craigslist prices.

The small claims limit in Iowa is $6500. That's where you'll have to file your lawsuit. You don't get paid for your travel or lost earnings during the pursuit of the lawsuit. And if you need a lawyer you generally don't get your lawyer fees unless your contract specified that winner gets lawyer fees.

You also need to be aware of the statute of limitations for lawsuits. It's 5 years for breach of an oral contract which I don't think applies since you breached it by not paying. I think that violation of a statutory requirement is a tort and you have 2 years for that. If the loss of your property occurred in early 2017 you don't have much time to sit on this.

Thank you for the informative information. The replacement value would be over $5000. I have an inventory list including the contents of each sealed box as well as pictures of almost everything. The majority of the items consisted of some of our antique collection. It is easy to find fairly accurate values with eBay data. I didn't expect to get what it was worth to me its more the principle of the matter. This happened in July or August of 2018. Somebody here gave me a link for Iowa Attorneys and I plan to contact a couple of them Monday.

Your right Arizona is a dry heat but a really really hot dry heat. lol. Thank you again for your time.

 

[Eekamouse]

Thank you for the informative information. The replacement value would be over $5000. I have an inventory list including the contents of each sealed box as well as pictures of almost everything. The majority of the items consisted of some of our antique collection. It is easy to find fairly accurate values with eBay data. I didn't expect to get what it was worth to me its more the principle of the matter. This happened in July or August of 2018. Somebody here gave me a link for Iowa Attorneys and I plan to contact a couple of them Monday.

Your right Arizona is a dry heat but a really really hot dry heat. lol. Thank you again for your time.

OK, for the sake of argument, let's say your stuff was worth $5000. How long did you say you had all this stuff in storage? Several years, correct? Let me tell you what you would have found if you'd gone into your storage unit after its long stint in storage. You would have found massive rodent damage. Mice and rat feces and urine everywhere. Evidence of chewing, chewing, chewing. Nests and sweet little vermin babies in your couches, chairs, boxes. Even if you were smart enough to not store anything the least bit edible in your unit, your belongings would still be thoroughly damaged or destroyed because the problem with storage is there's absolutely no way to guarantee that the other renters around your unit haven't stored food in their units. Mice and rats like to nest in quiet places and go grocery shopping nearby. Your unit has been a perfect nesting ground for mice and rats because no one has been going in and out of it so it's a great neighborhood to raise little litters of disgusting vermin in. Quite often, the people who rent storage units do so because for whatever reason, they've lost their apartment or house and need to store their stuff until they can find a new home. They pack everything they own into their unit including all the non perishable food from the kitchens. Rats and mice love it when some idiot brings in their food stuffs to temporarily store it. About the only thing safe from vermin is can goods. People don't realize what they're doing when they bring in boxed edibles and the like or they simply don't care. The nature of self storage is damage and destruction of belongings over time. And your stuff had been stored in an unit for a long time.

 

[justalayman]

It sounds like the operator may or may not have complied with the law but regarding the notice: the law says this

1. The occupant shall be notified by delivering in person with acceptance to be signed by the occupant or by mailing by certified mail to the last known address of the occupant, a notice which shall include:

With this as the clarification of the mailing option:

2. A notice mailed by certified mail pursuant to subsection 1 is made and completed when the notice is enclosed in a sealed envelope with the proper postage on the envelope, addressed to the occupant or successor at the last known mailing address, and deposited in a mail receptacle provided by the United Statespostal service.

While it states certified mail, the description is that of simple first class mail. I don’t know whaT the courts have said about the issue.


Unless the law has clarified that it must be actual certified mail, if they claim they did mail a proper notice, that combined with proof of contact via phone calls and text messages is likely to make your case difficult to win.



So, is there a reason you didn’t just pay what you owed?

 

[tigerstrike]

It sounds like the operator may or may not have complied with the law but regarding the notice: the law says this





With this as the clarification of the mailing option:





While it states certified mail, the description is that of simple first class mail. I don’t know whaT the courts have said about the issue.


Unless the law has clarified that it must be actual certified mail, if they claim they did mail a proper notice, that combined with proof of contact via phone calls and text messages is likely to make your case difficult to win.



So, is there a reason you didn’t just pay what you owed?

Thank you for your comments and information. Our lease did have a copy of the code you included saying that regular mail was ok. There were a couple of phone calls where we discussed the balance and payments (not in full) had been made. The time lapse after our phone call and the removal of our storage contents was 1 week or less. The law gives us about 30 days. 14 from the date of notice and then 2 weeks for the advertisement of sale. I wasn't able to pay in full at the time. Had I known there was a deadline to pay or lose everything I have plenty of family and friends who would have helped me. I have not mentioned that during the 4+ year period of renting there was an incident where several units had been broken into. The owners called us to let us know that our unit was involved. When I asked how much was taken she said she would let me know. We agreed for her to cut our lock so she could see inside and let us know. It was not a few days or weeks but a few months before we found out that our unit appeared to be full to the top. We even have documented calls to the local police department to see if they would check on the unit for us. We paid our rent throughout this time. The thieves climbed over top of units and removed everything through there door. Thanks again for your time responding. You are appreciated.

OK, for the sake of argument, let's say your stuff was worth $5000. How long did you say you had all this stuff in storage? Several years, correct? Let me tell you what you would have found if you'd gone into your storage unit after its long stint in storage. You would have found massive rodent damage. Mice and rat feces and urine everywhere. Evidence of chewing, chewing, chewing. Nests and sweet little vermin babies in your couches, chairs, boxes. Even if you were smart enough to not store anything the least bit edible in your unit, your belongings would still be thoroughly damaged or destroyed because the problem with storage is there's absolutely no way to guarantee that the other renters around your unit haven't stored food in their units. Mice and rats like to nest in quiet places and go grocery shopping nearby. Your unit has been a perfect nesting ground for mice and rats because no one has been going in and out of it so it's a great neighborhood to raise little litters of disgusting vermin in. Quite often, the people who rent storage units do so because for whatever reason, they've lost their apartment or house and need to store their stuff until they can find a new home. They pack everything they own into their unit including all the non perishable food from the kitchens. Rats and mice love it when some idiot brings in their food stuffs to temporarily store it. About the only thing safe from vermin is can goods. People don't realize what they're doing when they bring in boxed edibles and the like or they simply don't care. The nature of self storage is damage and destruction of belongings over time. And your stuff had been stored in an unit for a long time.

Thank you for your reply and you are right about some storage units. I have been to a lot of storage auctions so I know what you mean. Unfortunately I have had a lot of storage units. I have one in California going on 7 years now. Being this was not temp controlled and not knowing how long we would be gone we planned for this. We didn't store clothes, chemicals, food, ect. We had 3 large metal cabinets with metal or wood items, tools, brass, copper ect. The antiques were wrapped carefully airtight. The boxes contents were all wrapped as well and then the boxes were wrapped. Everything was lifted off the ground on platforms so the air could flow and no water could get in. We checked on the unit when we were vacation a couple of years after we rented and anything that could be a problem was taken care of. We moved for job opportunity. Thanks again for your time and honesty. I appreciate your comments.

 

[justalayman]

. I wasn't able to pay in full at the time. Had I known there was a deadline to pay or lose everything I have plenty of family and friends who would have helped me. I have not mentioned that during the 4+ year period of renting there was an incident

You were aware of a deadline. You discounted it as not being legally enforceable. Your arguments now that you weren’t aware of a deadline is bogus. Even if the deadline stated wasn’t enforceable you were aware action was imminent and failed to act


How long after the statement about the operator tossing the stuff did you find out the unit had actuslly been cleared Out?

I don’t understand what the issue with the thieves has to do with anything.

 

[tigerstrike]

You were aware of a deadline. You discounted it as not being legally enforceable. Your arguments now that you weren’t aware of a deadline is bogus. Even if the deadline stated wasn’t enforceable you were aware action was imminent and failed to act


How long after the statement about the operator tossing the stuff did you find out the unit had actuslly been cleared Out?

I don’t understand what the issue with the thieves has to do with anything.

I see where you are going with this. I'm supposed to reaffirm that he warned me of what his actions would be if I didn't pay immediately and admit I was aware of HIS deadline. That's why I mentioned it right from the start. Yes, your right. I was aware of a deadline. A rude, bullying deadline which was also threatening. Severe consequences if I didn't conform to his rules. So that's what I should have acted on? Bogus? Come on really? Discounted yes! If things could be handled his way why do we need a lease at all? Why do we need laws? I have no legal background or experience. Do I admit my part in this, yes and if I had paid in a couple of days I wouldn't be in this position. Does it come off to you or others as I'm just a guy trying to get out of a bill and be rewarded for someone's mistakes? I'm sure it does. What was his part in this??? Why did he have me sign a lease? If he needed this to come to a head then he should have followed the procedures of the lease and the laws which are there to protect him just as much as me. I mentioned the thieves because we paid during those months without knowing how much was stolen from our unit. Multiple attempts were made to find out. Did I get angry one day and say I won't PAY if you do not provide the information you promised us when you notified us about the break-in? No, I didn't, I was understanding. I think a lawyer is supposed to get the defendant emotional and you accomplished that. I do appreciate your insight. Hope your weekend was excellent.

 

[justalayman]

That isn’t what I said. I specifically stated that although you believed his deadline was not enforceable, you were clearly warned that adverse action was imminent. You refused to act upon that information.

Does it come off to you or others as I'm just a guy trying to get out of a bill and be rewarded for someone's mistakes

Not at all. I see you as somebody that wishes to profit from your own mistake. Your failure to pay your rent being delinquent for at least 4 months is why any of this happened.


As to him following the proper legal process: if you sue him you’ll find out if he did. He may have mailed a valid notice. I don’t know because I haven’t talked to him.

The issue with the thieves still doesn’t make sense. It didn’t mattter if they emptied your unit. You were liable for the rent until you cancelled your contract. The operator is not obligated to investigate your unit, or anybody else’s, and attempt to ascertain what was stolen. That’s your obligation if you want to know. If the operator did it, thank him for it because it was only out of the kindness of his heart that he,did it.

.

 

[tigerstrike]

Your failure to pay your rent being delinquent for at least 4 months is why any of this happened.

Yes, sir, this is true. If I could change it I would. My financial troubles for whatever the reason is not anyone's responsibility other than mine. I realize it put him in a bad situation and my troubles cost him. Over $2000 I paid to the storage, I have to hire an attorney and travel over 1000 miles each way. I don't see how I can profit from this. If you spoke to him and he said he mailed a letter you would believe him because I was in the wrong. Being behind on rent doesn't make me a liar or a bad person. I never received anything in the mail. The post office would have a record of a piece going from his address to mine but that might be hard to get. Sir thanks for letting me vent and your constructive criticism. Win or lose a decision in court will give me closure on this and be a learning experience I will grow from.

 

[justalayman]

The problem with requiring only first class mail: unless you call the guy a liar, if he says he mailed it, you have no real option but to accept he mailed it.

The post office would have a record of a piece going from his address to mine

not necessarily. While the usps does show me a picture of all the mail I’m supposed to receive each day, if the letter didn’t make it far enough in the system it would be photographed, they would have no record of the letter.

I don’t believe the usps can tell you where they picked up any particular piece of mail even if they can locate it within their system. They wouldn’t know if I put a letter in my mailbox for,the postman to pick up or if I put it in the postbox at the usps office.

 

[Zigner]

The USPS notification system that you (justalayman) are speaking of is spotty, at best. I often get a notice in my email to the effect of "There is a piece of mail for which we do not have a photograph". Also, I've received a picture of a piece of mail that never showed up. Lastly, the images are only stored for a relatively short period of time (less than 30 days, as I recall).

ETA: Sorry, this post is mostly a rant against the USPS

 

[not2cleverRed]

Tiger's in good company.

Terrell Owens has been dealing with a similar problem.