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  • Report:  #1135517

Complaint Review: Extra Space Storage - Milford Connecticut

Reported By:
Robin L. Redgate - Monroe, Connecticut,
Submitted:
Updated:

Extra Space Storage
488 boston post road Milford, 06477 Connecticut, USA
Phone:
2037953759
Web:
www.extraspace.com
Tell us has your experience with this business or person been good? What's this?

 

Last June, 2013 I rented a storage unit from Extra Space Storage located in Milford, Ct. I made regular payments until November, 2013 when I became very ill and had to be in the hospital.  I have documentation of this from the hospital and my doctor. After being discharge from the hospital I made a payment to E.S.S. on December 11, 2013, and told them of my condition.  I made another payment on January 4, 2014.  I will be the first one to admit that I did not make payment on February 7, 2014 and March 7th.  Being out of work for that length put me behind. Last week, on March 25 th I received a check, from Extra Space Storage Coporate office for $275.00 for my unit that was sold at auction on March 20, 2014.

After receiving this check I immediately called and was not given any assistance.  They told me they sent out a certified letter  on February 11th but it was returned undeliverable.  I never received or signed for a certified letter.  The post office in Monroe did not leave a card stating I had Certified letter waiting for me and I called the post office and they had no record of this letter.  I have spoken to the district manager and when I told him about my situation he told me he would call the person who bought my unit.  He called the next day and told me everything including my personal belongings, pictures of my children, family photos were sold by the person who bought the unit.  This whole situation is devastating. My whole life was in that unit.  Why would a person who didn't care for their things make a payment in January? I did some looking into on the internet about this company, and it am not the only one this has happened too. My unit contained many antiques and valuables in addition to my personal belongings.

I have spoken to manager, district manager, and Coporate office and everyone has a different story without any similarities.  Please look into this company, there were stories on the Better Business of Connecticut of people losing entire units the night before moving out their items, rates increasing without notice and the list goes on.  I am a teacher with the Town of Trumbull for the last 26 years.  I have a strong reputation and know I have been wronged.  I am amazed that no one has sued this company over their practices.  I have to tell you I am going to pursue legal action.  My biggest issue with this is that I was not informed of this auction so I could have stopped it. I could have asked a family member to help me out.  I was given no warning.

My furniture, antiques, and other items mean nothing to me, but my pictures of my kids and family, the ABC embroidered picture my mom made, my daughter and son's baby items mean the world to me!

I am not wasting anyone's time with this complaint.  They are bad people who are ripping off the innocent.  Please help me stop them from during this to someone else.

Robin

Monroe, CT.



6 Updates & Rebuttals

Rev. P.J. Robinson

Cincinnati,
Ohio,
LEGAL doesn' necessarily mean ETHICAL

#2Consumer Comment

Fri, February 06, 2015

I have been going through the complaints about this company, after filing a complaint of my own, and I'm seeing a lot of "consumer comments" that smack of originating from violating company employees. It is appalling that anyone would make fun of someone's misfortune. I'm seeing the same comment...basically that Extra Space had the legal right to do away with anyone's personal belongings without letting them know. Maybe it was in the contract, and maybe it was legal, but that doesn't necesarily make it ETHICAL. If just one of these negative reports keeps someone from losing their personal valuables to this company's unethical practices, it's worth it to file the complaint. At the very least, it shows a lack of concern for the community at large, and a total lack of respect or concern for their customers. NO ONE deserves being stuck doing business with a company like that, when there ARE ethical businesses out there that will help their customers by working with them to pay their bill when hard times hit. Obviously you commentors out there don't realize that if this company is that cut-throat, they wouldn't think twice about cutting your throat, either, if given half a reason. it is bad ethics to make fun of or take advantage of other's misfortunes. You may think it's fun now, but Karma has a way of turning that round and biting you in the behind eventually. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but eventually everyone pays for bad ethics perpetrated against others.

THE BOTTOM LINE: Extra Space does NOT care one bit about its customers or their belongings. Do you really want to give ONE PENNY of your hard-earned money to a company like that? I ferverently wish that I never did. Although I was able to save my belongings from being auctioned off, I DID NOT receive anything resembling a certified letter from them. I had an online account on their web site, and paid my bill there about 99% of the time, and had ALL the correct mailing address and other contact information there. If they sent a certified letter, it was to an "imaginary address" that was not furnished by me. Not only are they required to send a certified letter, but they have to send it to the address that you gave to them and be able to PROVE that they sent it there. It makes no difference wether you signed for it or not, it has to be to your correct address before they are off the hook for that obligation. They can't just send it to "whomever" and then claim that you were notified. -- This company is in the practice of making it difficult to pay the bill, so they can scavage their customers' belongings for a profit. (yes, I said a PROFIT - this woman has no idea just exactly how much money the space sold for. So for all she knows, ES received many times over what they were owed by her, and just sent her $275 of a much larger figure.) Those of you making these smarmy comments against their victims: if you choose to work for a company like that, then don't come crying here for sympathy when they finally stick it to you, too, in some other way as an employee. And, trust me, they are NOT above it

Admittedly, there probably is a percentage of complaints here that are actually by deadbeat customers. But there are so many, that it is statistically impossible that they are ALL deadbeats. I certainly wasn't, and I was treated no better.


Robert

Irvine,
California,
Ah yes, the "If you only knew the whole story"..story

#3Consumer Comment

Thu, April 03, 2014

You basically proved quite a few of my original claims. 

You seem to be under the impression that if you just do what ever you can do to avoid them.  Not answer the phone, don't try to contact them, and refuse delivery of Certified Letters you figure that they can't do anything because you weren't notified.  Well the fact of the matter is that the LAW in just about every State, states that sending a Certified Letter(received or not) is enough notice to go forward with the sale.  So if they have this proof, you most likely don't have a leg to stand on.

Also, you loose out on another point you seem to be trying to make.  They make NO additional money on this auction, therefore have no alternate motive to sell the unit other than to get their BACK rent due.  Oh and how do I know.  Well just how did you get that $275 check?  It was because they sold the unit for $275 more than was owed and you, again by the law, are entitled to the difference.

It doesn't matter if they have 40 pages or 4000 pages of complaints.  It only matters if they followed the LEGAL procedure in YOUR case.  If you have a problem with the legallities then perhaps that is where you should be focusing your attention.

The fact remains that you knew you had payments due AND you not only failed to make 2 payments, you failed to contact them.  Again that goes to the whole "If they don't talk to me, they can't do anything".  Because if you were as you claim to have a strong reputation you know you should have called them.

Then one thing I didn't bring up and it is just an observation.  It is just amazing how everyone who runs into troubles seems to keep personal photos and videos that are critical to their entire life in a STORAGE UNIT that they may visit every few months.  So please tell me honestly, when was the last time you went to the storage unit to look at these photos?



So I will just close on this.  Yes you have sympathy for the auctioning off of your stuff, but as someone else said that is about it.  Although, I do hope you keep us posted on all of the legal action you are going to take.


Robin L. Redgate

Monroe,
Connecticut,
You would be correct if you knew the whole story

#4Author of original report

Wed, April 02, 2014

You would be absolutely correct in you don't pay and receive letters of intent or phone calls about your account your right, you should lose your things. However, when letters of intent (certified) aren't delivered(as my post office informed me) to auction your items or a phone call about your account and never mentioning the auction, something is wrong!  In addition, when the corporate office in Utah thinks that there is a problem and are going to work on how this could be done to someone, maybe you should get all the facts correct before voicing your opinion. Also, I was not late two months! Finally, some words of wisdom: Educate yourself before responding. Go onthe Better Buisness Bureau of Utah and read the 40 pages of complaints about this company and the many facilities across the United States.  

Robin

Monroe, CT


Tyg

Pahrump,
Nevada,
No ripoff..

#5General Comment

Wed, April 02, 2014

 There is no ripoff here, just the consequences of NOT PAYING WHAT YOU OWE!!! You missed atleast 2 months of payments. How long were they expected to hold your crap?? Its a business and if YOU are not paying then they will sell your belongings to make back what you owe and send you the rest. They sold your stuff to make back what you owed and to open up a unit for someone who may actually pay them.

Your entire argument is flawed. You seek to play the victim but by your own words you did this to yourself. Each and every excuse you have presented should have been use3d BEFORE they sold your items. You COULD have sent a family member to pay the unit. You COULD have asked a friend to go by and drop off a payment. But you did none of these. So they sold your stuff.

Its NOT about right/wrong. Its about you not paying and this is what happens when you dont pay. Does it suck for you?? YUP!! Im sure it does. But YOU did this to YOU. You cant screw them over for months at a time and expect them to sit there and take it. At some point you will have to realize that this is on you and ACCEPT it. Sure they have complaints online. Mainly from people like you who DID NOT pay thier bill and thier stuff got sold. Once you stopped paying your bill, it was NO LONGER your items. It becomes thiers because lack of payment OR communication on your part means that you have ABANDONED them.

Since you wouldnt WILLINGLY pay them what you owed, they TOOK IT. Get over it and move on. There is no help for you with ONE exception. Offer to buy back the photos from the individual who purchased your unit. But you will have to play nice with the very same people who you have unjustly accused here in your post. Lets just HOPE that no one spikes your attempts to get that information by drawing thier attention to this post........because Im betting they wont be so helpful when they see your slander spread all over the web.

And PLEASE. do tell us what kind of action you THINK you can take?? Its not a criminal case as you abandoned your property by lack of payment. Its not a civil case as the contract YOU signed clearly states that lack of payment will mean you forfiet any rights to the property. Your hurt feelings and lost pictures are not in any way actionable. So please educate us as to what YOU believe you can sue them for.

You have my sympathy for the loss of your items, but thats all ANYONE can give you. There is no "right" or "fair" in any of this because its just business. Businesses can no longer eat loss and stay afloat. In THIS instance, your unit was costing them money.


Robert

Irvine,
California,
You are an adult right?

#6Consumer Comment

Wed, April 02, 2014

I can guarantee you that your rental agreement had nothing in there that said you only had to pay when you could.  I can also just about guarantee that it also explained what would happen if you failed to pay it.  So you knew you had a payment due in February and March.  You obviously never tried too contact them by phone during this time.  Most likely because you figured if they don't talk to you they can't do anything because you were "never notified".  So we get to this point...

They told me they sent out a certified letter  on February 11th but it was returned undeliverable.  I never received or signed for a certified letter.  The post office in Monroe did not leave a card stating I had 

Certified letter waiting for me and I called the post office and they had no record of this letter.

- In just about every jurisdiction a Certified Letter is legal notice and as long as the company does have proof that they attempted to send it..you have zero standing.  By the way not saying you did this, even though your apparent almost delibrate lack of communication with them doesn't have you looking so good.  But you wouldn't be the first person to get a "notice" that they have a letter to pick up and somehow "loose" it and never pick up the letter.  Figuring that if they never actually sign for it they can claim that they didn't know what was going on.

Why would a person who didn't care for their things make a payment in January?

- How about asking why would a person who did care for their things NOT make a payment in Feburuary or March?

Just how many months of no contact were you going to let it go before you not only paid the current months rent but all of the back rent that was due?  Perhaps a better question would be is how many months were you going to go before you even tried to contact them about your issues.  Oh wait a minute you did tell them once in December about your condition..yea that surely covers the issues 2-3 months later.

 I could have asked a family member to help me out.  I was given no warning.

- Again..you are an adult right?  You KNEW you had payments due.  Even if we go with the assumption they didn't notify you, someone who claims to have a "strong reputation" should know that they need to make this payment.  Yet..NOTHING. Ummm....

 I have a strong reputation and know I have been wronged

- The only reputation you are showing here is one of a "deadbeat" who just because they had issues they are entitled to skipping payments they made a legal agreement to make.


Ken

Colorado,
What part of the agreement you signed with them have they violated?

#7Consumer Suggestion

Wed, April 02, 2014

"I have a strong reputation and know I have been wronged.  I am amazed that no one has sued this company over their practices.  I have to tell you I am going to pursue legal action.  My biggest issue with this is that I was not informed of this auction so I could have stopped it. I could have asked a family member to help me out.  I was given no warning."

You have NOT been wronged...they were, you didn't pay as agreed.  Your alleged "legal action" is going NOWHERE unless you can prove they violated the agreement's terms..did they?

They don't have to inform you they're going to enforce the agreement, you KNEW you were a "bit" behind. Why didn't you ask a "family member" for help earlier and stop this sale. You gambled and lost, it's as simple as that.

Let us know here on Ripoff Report how your "Legal Action" comes out...what could possibly go wrong?

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