Stor-All Center

November 10, 2017Dear [redacted],Thank you for letting us know right away that a customer had filed a complaint with the bureau, We strive for integrity and excellent communication. It's our goal to have all our customers happy, I'm aware that [redacted] has had a very unpleasant experience, though...

the cause for the damage is indeterminable. My official reply to his complaint follows:In reply to our customer's complaint about mold damage on his belongings:First of all we were very alarmed to see anything like this occur. Our business thrives on keeping customers'’ goods safe and secure. We provide monitored electronic gate access to our completely fenced-in facility and have 24/7 security cameras at dozens of locations within and around our buildings. The unit in which this customer stored his goods is newly constructed and state of the art and we had no reason to be believe there would be any cause for concern.While I don't recall the details he now states of the conversation about potential damage prior to his move-in, I do recall him relating the story of the other business being close to a river and prone to water damage when he moved out. The building we constructed is on high ground far from any water flow. In addition, we inform each new customer that by nature of not knowing what is stored that we cannot and do not insure customer's contents; that customers are responsible for insuring their own belongings. We do offer 3rd party insurance for customers who do not have homeowners or renters insurance. The customer filing this complaint was made aware and signed his lease with reference to the above waiver - commonly known as a 'hold harmless' clause.When he moved out on a Saturday six months iater he made several trips in and out of the facility before calling me to say there was damage to his property. I immediately met him on his next return to our facility and went to see the damaged goods. Indeed there was more mold than I'd ever seen on anything stored at our business. As I recall, the furniture he showed me was on a rented truck and he requested that he be allowed to place the furniture and other items back into the storage unit. I believe he said he had taken them home, found the damage, and brought them back. I agreed to Set him put the items into his storage unit and offered free rent there until we could figure out what might have happened. I was in shock to see such damage, especially since it was claimed the damage happened in our new building. This customer was very upset, and no matter how the damage happened I can certainly empathize- I openly empathized and wondered aloud as to what might have caused it. There was only one other time this occurred in the fifteen years I've owned this business and it happened as a result of that customer moving their furniture in during a pouring rain. I asked if he had moved while it was raining and he vehemently said no, I took it as my responsibility to look for a different cause.My thoughts then went to our new building and its construction. I wondered if the contractor had done something wrong, or If the building had be improperly designed.I openly voiced those concerns with this customer and even speculated that the concrete may not have been fully dry. I believe it was those statements of mine made within minutes of seeing the damage that the customer is referring to when he talks about the construction timeline, and about our potential for liability. I was speaking off the top of my head while trying to find to some explanation for how this could have occurred,I offered that he could store the moldy items in his storage unit without charge until we could find a cause, and until he could file a claim with his homeowner's policy.He also asked for my business liability information, saying that his girlfriend was an insurance adjuster. I volunteered that information and said I would get in touch with the building contractor and building manufacturer to search for clues. My interests were in getting to the root of the cause, and also checking on other customers' storage units in case all were damaged.Two days later on Monday I received a call from my business insurance company and was surprised when they told me that this customer had already filed a liability claim with them. We had agreed he was going to pursue his homeowner's insurance first. As of that time there was nothing to indicate an actual problem with our building or facility. Still, I worked with my insurance company's investigative team and supplied them with all the actual dates of construction, including concrete pour date, building erection dates, and first occupancy dates. The concrete was poured in September of 2016, the building arrived and was erected in November of 2016 - sixty-four days after the concrete pour. That date was significant because I found that concrete normally cures within thirty days and this pad was open and out in full sunshine for over two months, which eliminated the possibility of uncured concrete. First occupancy wasn't until late December or early January (rental and move-in dates).It took time to research our records and I'm sorry that this customer thinks I tried to misconstrue the records in any way. I only needed the time to research them exactly rather than speak from memory. The general contractor verified verbally and photographically that the concrete was poured with a proper vapor barrier to prevent moisture problems. The manufacturer verified that this building design is sound and properly sealed against water damage. There are no leaks in the roof or wails. So my immediate thoughts about problems with the building proved unfounded.Within days and for the next several weeks we checked storage units in all areas of our building to see if other units were similarly affected. All ten units along the entire outside edge where this customer stored his goods were checked, and not one unit had problems with mold or moisture of any kind. The other outside units around the perimeter were also free from moisture or mold. The interior units were also checked and a humidity monitoring system was installed to monitor moisture levels. Nothing has shown to be wrong with the building and all units were clear except for light indications of mold in two interior units behind the complainant's storage unit. I contacted a mold remediation company to enquire about the problem and ask for solutions and they reminded me that mold is a living organism that propagates through microscopic spores that spread from a point of origin. Basically mold has to be introduced to the environment and since this buiiding was entirely new and completely clean I had to suspect that the mold was brought in on someone's furniture.Given my own full investigation and the fact that no other units were so adversely affected that this problem is not with our building but with the goods that were stored in the affected unit. Had it been a problem with the building itself, our other customers would also have had serious problems. Based on this full investigation I feel that the problem started within the goods stored. Not necessarily intentionally, but damaging as much to my business as to the customers' goods. We've spent substantial money investigating the problem and performing remediation in case there was a problem. Ill also now have to have each storage unit in the vicinity of this customer's unit disinfected so as to prevent any further contamination.I've taken on this investigation out of responsibility to all my customers, this one included. Had I found a problem with the building or our services I'd have had to assume full responsibility. My business liability coverage would then have taken over and provided coverage for the customer.However, after full investigation our insurance company found no reason to assume liability for his claim. Our own investigation also found no issues that would cause this damage. That this was the only customer out of over fifty customers in this building that had such severe damage also indicates the damage did not originate here at our buiiding. We have over two-hundred customers here and none has a problem like this. Thus I have to deny payment of any kind other than the two months' free rent I've provided pending full investigation.It's my responsibility and my intention to do everything I can for each and every one of our customers. As to this issue I've done much to enquire and to remediate the potential for the cause of this problem, and in the end I believe it originated in his belongings themselves and only grew, and spread some, while stored here for six months. At this point I've also asked the customer in writing to remove the moldy goods from our facility for the protection of our other customers.Sincerely,David GOwner,