R
rayallen
Guest
This peculiar situation involves a nationwide chain of self storage facilites and some of their locations which REQUIRE you enter into an insurance contract to cover belongings stored.......in my case it was $8.00 per month for $2,000 coverage on two different units. This amount was
equivalent to 10% of the monthly rent for each unit.
The facility I contracted with, located in central florida, FAILED to disclose this mandatory surchage when i initially visited the facility to obtain a quote and view the available
storage lockers. When I returned to rent the units, with a full U-haul, they revealed this
surcharge and DID NOT ask if property was covered by homeowners insurance. They did not allow tenants to select from more than one insurance outfit.
Upon contacting the corporate office I was informed that "some facilities require insurance"
and they claimed I should have not been made to subscribe if
I had homeowners coverage (seemingly implying I would have to show proof of such?) and I should now apply for
a refund. Bizarre.
I have rented countless self storage units in half a dozen states during the past 15 years and NONE required insurance. I think this is some
sweetheart arrangment between the insurance entity and the storage facility that has the earmarks of a potential class action remedy. The storage facility website makes no mention of mandatory insurance despite the fact they do present general info on the insurance plan.
There is little doubt in my mind it is "illegal" for them to require insurance - particularly when they FAIL to mention the charge when they quote rates, which makes the tactic tantamount to a
bait-n-switch scenario.
I remain uncertain about the (mis?) information from corporate as it relates to their maintaining
"some of the locations" require insurance. I would
presume such a decision would not be left to the discretion of district managers and would be mandated by corporate........it almost seems as if the left hand doesn't know what the right one is doing. I was not provided an answer when I asked about the criteria used to determine why policies would be mandatory at some locations and not others.
The insurance application they handed you had the
waiver section at the bottom "X-ed" out. The site manager informed me it "used to be optional" and when I made my displeasure known she went on to say, "somebody is making money here and it isn't me or you".
equivalent to 10% of the monthly rent for each unit.
The facility I contracted with, located in central florida, FAILED to disclose this mandatory surchage when i initially visited the facility to obtain a quote and view the available
storage lockers. When I returned to rent the units, with a full U-haul, they revealed this
surcharge and DID NOT ask if property was covered by homeowners insurance. They did not allow tenants to select from more than one insurance outfit.
Upon contacting the corporate office I was informed that "some facilities require insurance"
and they claimed I should have not been made to subscribe if
I had homeowners coverage (seemingly implying I would have to show proof of such?) and I should now apply for
a refund. Bizarre.
I have rented countless self storage units in half a dozen states during the past 15 years and NONE required insurance. I think this is some
sweetheart arrangment between the insurance entity and the storage facility that has the earmarks of a potential class action remedy. The storage facility website makes no mention of mandatory insurance despite the fact they do present general info on the insurance plan.
There is little doubt in my mind it is "illegal" for them to require insurance - particularly when they FAIL to mention the charge when they quote rates, which makes the tactic tantamount to a
bait-n-switch scenario.
I remain uncertain about the (mis?) information from corporate as it relates to their maintaining
"some of the locations" require insurance. I would
presume such a decision would not be left to the discretion of district managers and would be mandated by corporate........it almost seems as if the left hand doesn't know what the right one is doing. I was not provided an answer when I asked about the criteria used to determine why policies would be mandatory at some locations and not others.
The insurance application they handed you had the
waiver section at the bottom "X-ed" out. The site manager informed me it "used to be optional" and when I made my displeasure known she went on to say, "somebody is making money here and it isn't me or you".