So I rented a storage unit from this place for 12 years straight. Rent went up every 6 to 8 months or so, but I figured hey it is real estate and the increases reflect California real estate market. So I bit the bullet, tightened up my belt and dealt with it until i was able to get out and stopped the bleeding.
Fast forward to this past few weeks. I was going out of the country and needed a space to park my car for 18 days. Figured it was temporary and that I would be back soon, I opted to rent a parking space here since it is nearby. It was an uncovered space but I thought it would be OK.
I was wrong, completely wrong!
When I returned and went to retrieve my car, there had been an attempted theft! The steering colum case was ripped off and the ignition key slot was damaged to where it would no longer fir the key. The interior was a mess. The glove compartment and between seat interior compartment were thoroughly trashed. Everything was scattered all over. The battery was taken. So even if I manage to force the key into the ignition, the car will not start. This was about 4 or 4:30 pm. on a Tuesday afternoon. And "no Public Storage personnel" was anywhere to be found dispite the posted hour of operation of 6 am. to 6 pm.
So I called. No live person to take the call. I left a message. A short while later they called me back. As I began to tell them what happened to my car, they told me yes they know. The incident happened 2 days prior and that they have file a report with Montebello PD and for me to come next day at 2 pm. to get the report number to file with my insurance.
Sound ok so far?
Next day I showed up at about 2:30 pm. and told the lady at the office near the gate what happened and why I was there. To my astonishment, she knew "nothing" about it! The left hand didn't know what the right hand was doing. After a few minutes, another lady called into the office and confrontationally and combatively proceeded to tell me they are not responsible.
Was I upset? Oh! Why would a long time customer like me be upset just because I "paid" to leave my car somewhere thinking it's safer than parking it on the street? Why would I be upset if the party I paid tells me they don't know anything about an attempted theft of my car after having told me to come get information? Why would I be upset if the party I paid tells me they are not responsible for anything that happened? Why? Why would I be upset?
So I put in a call to the PD and waited. When the black and white pulled up and official police report was filed, the officer tells me she just came from another incident report at a Public Storage. We went to the office to as about security footage and a man who introduced himself as the District Manager was there. I asked him if this type of thing is a common occurrence here. He responded "No. But a lot of people are impacted." What the f_ck does that mean?
My take...
The people who attempted to steal my car had access to the gate access code. Surely they wern't going to ram the car through the gate to get out if they succeeded in hot wiring my car.
Conclusion: This is not the place to trust with your belongings. It is not safe and they don't care... read more