Disboard lawyers?

[puck]

My son stored an old, non functioning car he wants to restore in a friend’s storage unit. The friend stopped paying his storage bill and has no inclination to do so. Does my son have to pay the storage unit bill to get his car out of his friend’s storage? Can he just go to them with his car title and ask for the unit to be opened to get his property out since he has no legal obligation to pay the storage bill? At this point the bill has to be worth more than the car. The unit is a large one and has the friend’s old car, car parts and tools etc in it, not just son’s car. This is in Florida BTW.

 

[barkley]

not a lawyer but dealt w/late mil's storage unit when she passed. found out that she had not paid for several months and was on verge of losing possessions (we had no clue what was in there). in the state she lived we had to provide proof of legal ownership of the storage contract (we had her will to prove that) in addition to paying off all the past due rent. then had to pay for the storage place to cut her lock (we couldn't find the key to hers, they had already put their own on over it due to unpaid bill).

your son may be out of luck-and probably needs to contact vehicle licensing to find out how to get name off title since it will likely be auctioned at some point.

 

[3 MEN AND A BOAT]

He can ask however the storage unit had an agreement with the friend to pay each month, your son had some sort of arrangement with his friend. The storage company might allow your son access to his property, and they might not but your son doesn’t have any recourse other than pay the passed due rent, and take the life lesson not to trust that friend with much in the future.
ETA- if your son approaches the storage company, he might explain the situation and offer to pay a portion just to retrieve his property, who knows maybe they’ll accept it.
In the end all he can do is ask.

 

[disneychrista]

My guess is yes he would have to pay the fee to get his car out. Depending on how far behind the rent is, they may not even allow that. And the friend would have to do this NOT your son since he isn’t the one on the rental contract. They may just auction it. Your son could bid/win but with two cars, tools and car parts he will likely be out some ca$h to do that.

 

[mnrose]

Pretty sure the only way to get the car back is to pay the storage fees. OTOH, the storage unit at some point is going to "auction off" the stuff in that locker, and maybe your son can "buy" his car back for less than the fees. Also, it sure doesn't hurt to ASK whether they'd let him have it back, but they are under no obligation to do so. The stuff in there serves as collateral for the storage fees.

 

[puck]

Thanks guys. I know there is usually no way to get things from someone else’s delinquent storage. I thought perhaps since a car has a legal title he may have some added leverage. Life lesson. Oh well.

 

[tvguy]

Pretty sure the only way to get the car back is to pay the storage fees. OTOH, the storage unit at some point is going to "auction off" the stuff in that locker, and maybe your son can "buy" his car back for less than the fees. Also, it sure doesn't hurt to ASK whether they'd let him have it back, but they are under no obligation to do so. The stuff in there serves as collateral for the storage fees.

Well, quoting the "Storage Wars" TV show, vehicles found in lockers can't be auctioned off. It's illegal under motor vehicle law. But that could just be in Texas where the show is shot.

 

[Ladyhawke]

Contact your local Department of Motor Vehicles and see what they say. Stolen cars are sometimes stored in storage units until the thieves can get rid of the cars. I can't imagine that if they abandon the unit that the cars simply go to whomever wins the auction on the unit.

Your son owns the title. If he's not willing to relinquish the title, I can't see how a new person can have the title transferred without his signature signing the title over.

 

[barkley]

a quick google search on florida law finds the following regarding cars stored in unpaid storage units-


(2017) Florida Gov. Rick Scott signed an update to the state’s self-storage lien law on June 9 effective July 1st... HB 357 also allows operators to sell or have stored vehicles towed after default reaches 60 days...

...if a lien is claimed on property that is a motor vehicle or a watercraft and rent and other charges related to the property remain unpaid or unsatisfied for 60 days after the maturity of the obligation to pay the rent and other charges, the facility or unit owner may sell the property.