A Safe Keeping Self Storage

Response:Office closure: - A Safe Keeping at both [redacted] and [redacted] office had staffing issues between October through March Normally, the facilities would require two full time employee and a part time employee to cover "OFF" days and effectively run the property But due to lack of a part timer, the full time employees were only able to alternate between the properties and cover the properties "remotely" from the facility that they were scheduled to work at that means (making call backs, and collecting rent over the phone)- A plan was placed by myself to continue to run each property as smoothly as possible by: checking the mailbox and drop box in the morning prior to opening the facility that was going to be physically covered by a staff member and then again, check the mailbox and drop box at night prior to going home, to make sure all the checks/money order payments were applied in a timely mannerThis way, it would minimize unnecessary late fees to our tenants and maintain a constant daily deposit for both facilities- Our Customer Service Center, was aware of the closures ahead of time, and thus they also would be able to assist in call backs as well as payment processing- For those tenants who wanted to pay in cash we advised them to drive to the facility that was staffed and process the payment there, though inconvenient it was an available option to our tenants- The above continued until March when [redacted] as able to hire a floater to cover the facility- Due to the type of business (bank deposits, cleaning storage units, fix a spring, errands, marketing and lunch) the office would require to be closed and we would place a "We Will Return At" Clock with Customer Services contact number and at that point the customer could come back later, call Customer Service or leave a check or money order in the drop box- During circumstances, yes, we do still close the office and do place the "We Will Return At" Clock and continue our call backs, and send invoices via paper/emailCurrently the facilities have been fully staffed since January Facts regarding [redacted] specific account: - Tenant of A Safe Keeping since 2/13/- As of 8/5/17, unit *** account has been credited with $- Communication attempts made by staff during business hours via phone, mail, email noted on our accounts, actual regular communication has been maintained with [redacted] - Incorrect amount sent to facility after initial Rental Rate Increase went into effect on 6/1/Previously a letter was mailed on 4/25/advising of future rental changesAfterwards, communication was attempted and maintained advising of such increase, however payments continued to be sent for incorrect amount even after an invoices emailed for correct amount-Regardless of on site staff, payments were being received for wrong amount, and we attempted to rectify it by contacting and speaking to the customer to send correct payments amount- Invoices are either mailed or emailed to our tenants days prior to their due date, in [redacted] case via (email) to remind of future rent due- All payments are processed in the office the same day they are received by mailAt the [redacted] Court House facility the mail is in between 9:00-9:45am in average and for the [redacted] *** office between 3:30-4:15pm in averageWe also, have a drop box next to the office, for our customers to drop their payment in the even were we are not in the office- [redacted] allows a day period for payments to be made or received by the customer or via USPS mailing systemDuring the day period, we attempt to contact our tenants as a courtesy, to remind them of their balances, to assist them in avoiding additional charges by contacting them via phone, email or even SMS text message throughout the monthWe utilize Call Potential Software to have "Marcy" automated system to contact the customer and send e-mails/SMS text automatically for usHowever, we still have to maintain a phone call at least once a week with a live person from the officeHas there been any attempt to rectify the above situation? - Yes, by contacting the customer via phone, mail and emailAlso in total $have been provided in credit towards the customers account to date 8/5/(Previous ownership provided $in credit towards the customers account prior to 6/1/What caused additional the late fee? - It was due to incorrect payment amount sent to the facility, even after invoice is sent days prior, payments continued to be received for incorrect amountWe process the payment when it is received and check the mailbox in the morning for [redacted] Court House and for [redacted] the mailman is at the property in late afternoonThe drop boxes are checked daily, again in the morning and at nightThis is to maintain accuracy for payments to be processed on timeAttempts made to rectify situation with tenant, up to and including credits on accountWhat happens if there is no staff during business hours? - We place a "We Will Return At" wheel clock with Customer Services phone number, and a time is posted on the doorStaff needs to return at such time postedThis advises tenants that they are out of the officeWhy was [redacted] account charged for a lock? - We did a lock check on 4/1/and sent a letter on 4/1/advising of the unit found unsecured (as customer stated on letter, [redacted] not responsible for loss on unsecured units as its customer responsibility)What did the staff do to avoid the lock applied to her accont? - We attempted to call on 4/1/17, 4/7/17, 4/11/but mailbox full- We sent a letter on 4/1/and no response received about that letter- We then sent an email on 4/7/to attempt communicationOn 4/11/a decision was made by our staff to properly secure the unit with an actual lock and such we charge the lock to the customer account and mail the keys to their last known address- Customer acknowledged situation on 6/13/with our staff, after we contacted the customer regarding a payment sent to us for incorrect amountIn conclusion: - We provided our customer with credits for past customer service situations totaling $The problem is not the check not received on a time but the correct amount received, to be processed, and avoid further feesEven, after communicating with the customer via phone and sending an invoice reminder that shows the actual due date- We sent electronic invoices and notices and attempted to maintained constant communication via phone or email to make payments for the correct amount and avoid delaysAgain, due to wrong amount sent to us, this caused fees to continue to accrue- We do care for our tenants, we are in business to provide a service, a secure storage facility, we understand situation arise and after reviewing an account a decision is madeAt the same time we believe we made the correct decision by safeguarding the customer belongings with an actual lock as it has no lock and a tamper tag is not sufficient enough to safeguard a unitWe also find it fair that fees were not waived, due to our above attempts to communicate with the customer in a timely mannerJose F [redacted] Facility Manager A Safe Keeping [redacted] Court House and [redacted]

Response:Office closure: - A Safe Keeping at both *** *** *** *** and *** *** *** office had staffing issues between October through March Normally, the facilities would require two full time employee and a part time employee to cover "OFF" days and effectively run the property
But due to lack of a part timer, the full time employees were only able to alternate between the properties and cover the properties "remotely" from the facility that they were scheduled to work at that means (making call backs, and collecting rent over the phone)- A plan was placed by myself to continue to run each property as smoothly as possible by: checking the mailbox and drop box in the morning prior to opening the facility that was going to be physically covered by a staff member and then again, check the mailbox and drop box at night prior to going home, to make sure all the checks/money order payments were applied in a timely mannerThis way, it would minimize unnecessary late fees to our tenants and maintain a constant daily deposit for both facilities- Our Customer Service Center, was aware of the closures ahead of time, and thus they also would be able to assist in call backs as well as payment processing- For those tenants who wanted to pay in cash we advised them to drive to the facility that was staffed and process the payment there, though inconvenient it was an available option to our tenants- The above continued until March when *** *** *** as able to hire a floater to cover the facility- Due to the type of business (bank deposits, cleaning storage units, fix a spring, errands, marketing and lunch) the office would require to be closed and we would place a "We Will Return At" Clock with Customer Services contact number and at that point the customer could come back later, call Customer Service or leave a check or money order in the drop box- During circumstances, yes, we do still close the office and do place the "We Will Return At" Clock and continue our call backs, and send invoices via paper/emailCurrently the facilities have been fully staffed since January Facts regarding *** *** *** specific account: - Tenant of A Safe Keeping since 2/13/- As of 8/5/17, unit *** account has been credited with $- Communication attempts made by staff during business hours via phone, mail, email noted on our accounts, actual regular communication has been maintained with *** *** - Incorrect amount sent to facility after initial Rental Rate Increase went into effect on 6/1/Previously a letter was mailed on 4/25/advising of future rental changesAfterwards, communication was attempted and maintained advising of such increase, however payments continued to be sent for incorrect amount even after an invoices emailed for correct amount-Regardless of on site staff, payments were being received for wrong amount, and we attempted to rectify it by contacting and speaking to the customer to send correct payments amount- Invoices are either mailed or emailed to our tenants days prior to their due date, in *** *** case via (email) to remind of future rent due- All payments are processed in the office the same day they are received by mailAt the *** *** Court House facility the mail is in between 9:00-9:45am in average and for the *** *** office between 3:30-4:15pm in averageWe also, have a drop box next to the office, for our customers to drop their payment in the even were we are not in the office- *** *** *** allows a day period for payments to be made or received by the customer or via USPS mailing systemDuring the day period, we attempt to contact our tenants as a courtesy, to remind them of their balances, to assist them in avoiding additional charges by contacting them via phone, email or even SMS text message throughout the monthWe utilize Call Potential Software to have "Marcy" automated system to contact the customer and send e-mails/SMS text automatically for usHowever, we still have to maintain a phone call at least once a week with a live person from the officeHas there been any attempt to rectify the above situation? - Yes, by contacting the customer via phone, mail and emailAlso in total $have been provided in credit towards the customers account to date 8/5/(Previous ownership provided $in credit towards the customers account prior to 6/1/What caused additional the late fee? - It was due to incorrect payment amount sent to the facility, even after invoice is sent days prior, payments continued to be received for incorrect amountWe process the payment when it is received and check the mailbox in the morning for *** *** Court House and for *** ** *** the mailman is at the property in late afternoonThe drop boxes are checked daily, again in the morning and at nightThis is to maintain accuracy for payments to be processed on timeAttempts made to rectify situation with tenant, up to and including credits on accountWhat happens if there is no staff during business hours? - We place a "We Will Return At" wheel clock with Customer Services phone number, and a time is posted on the doorStaff needs to return at such time postedThis advises tenants that they are out of the officeWhy was *** *** *** account charged for a lock? - We did a lock check on 4/1/and sent a letter on 4/1/advising of the unit found unsecured (as customer stated on letter, *** *** *** not responsible for loss on unsecured units as its customer responsibility)What did the staff do to avoid the lock applied to her accont? - We attempted to call on 4/1/17, 4/7/17, 4/11/but mailbox full- We sent a letter on 4/1/and no response received about that letter- We then sent an email on 4/7/to attempt communicationOn 4/11/a decision was made by our staff to properly secure the unit with an actual lock and such we charge the lock to the customer account and mail the keys to their last known address- Customer acknowledged situation on 6/13/with our staff, after we contacted the customer regarding a payment sent to us for incorrect amountIn conclusion: - We provided our customer with credits for past customer service situations totaling $The problem is not the check not received on a time but the correct amount received, to be processed, and avoid further feesEven, after communicating with the customer via phone and sending an invoice reminder that shows the actual due date- We sent electronic invoices and notices and attempted to maintained constant communication via phone or email to make payments for the correct amount and avoid delaysAgain, due to wrong amount sent to us, this caused fees to continue to accrue- We do care for our tenants, we are in business to provide a service, a secure storage facility, we understand situation arise and after reviewing an account a decision is madeAt the same time we believe we made the correct decision by safeguarding the customer belongings with an actual lock as it has no lock and a tamper tag is not sufficient enough to safeguard a unitWe also find it fair that fees were not waived, due to our above attempts to communicate with the customer in a timely mannerJose F* Facility Manager A Safe Keeping *** *** Court House and *** *** ***