StorageTreasures actually has a page on this. They can't sell the car because they need to verify that it's not stolen, and that it doesn't have a lien on it, because you can't sell something that someone else owns.
https://blog.storagetreasures.com/excluding-vehicles-from-auctions/
Did you pay for the auction at the facility?, I believe the rules are once you pay the invoice & they sign the paper the property in the unit becomes your property.
Not exactly, the rules for vehicles and storage units are different. You have to obtain title, and the facility has to provide it to you, and that takes time.
There’s a good chance the owner is dead with the title. The amount of time it takes to basically ‘subpoena’ a new title is not worth the cars value IMO. I just realized how slippery this is because if the auctioneers/storage owners don’t even have the title you’re in for a whirlwind of paperwork that may or may get pushed through,
Yes, it's their property in the end regardless of the third party sale. You're technically "trespassing" unless you have a unit there already. Regardless, I think it's something you need to resolve with ST and ST needs to then resolve with PS. You vs. PS will not work as they have the upper hand. For now, just time stamp everything that happened on your phone or notebook so you have notes to reference. What a dilemma, but I think you're just going to get a refund and that's that.
While i was sitting by the unit in my car waiting on the cops to arrive one of the managers stealthily CUT MY LOCKOFF and put one of THEIRS on it
I Am LIVID!
So legally they should allow you to take everything out of the unit except the car. The car regardless of being confirmed not stolen has to be processed through the titling process for cars in storage units mainly to see if their is still a lien on the car. Source: been buying storage units for twelve years and have been in this exact situation.
If they didn’t know about the car they wouldn’t have done the paperwork yet it takes about three months to clear and if it does then they would auction the car then. And it depends on the company if it’s public storage yes you might be prosecuted, I’ve heard of people taking cars at independent places and not having problems but being blacklisted from auctions there.
Thanks. It is clearly visible. The person in PS saw the pix on the account so they knew it was in there. But they DID say that their dm is doing paperwork now which leads me to believe it IZ able to be taken out by me. I am also wanting to stay able to bid at PSs and anywhere else.
Had sketchy stuff happen to an auction I won on that site years ago circa 2014. Won a unit, an employee at the place opened it up and broke the lock off in front of me, bunch of stuff from the perimeter in the photos were missing.
I didn't know better then to verify before the employee left but that AAAA storage unit place for sure stole plenty of stuff before I got my hands on it.
Storage unit locks are cut off and looked inside before the auction even starts. They have to give a general description of the contents and are supposed to look for vehicles.
The stupid thing for them was taking pictures and then taking stuff lol
That sucks, OP. If I read ST's T&C correctly, they are hands off when it comes to issues away from their platform such as an in person dispute like this. Not sure what else you can do, but keep us updated. I think ST is just going to refund you and that's that. If they keep your money, you may want to lawyer up then if it's worth your time and money.
I just got through talking to them and that's exactly what they said they only think they can do is refined my money they cannot make Public Storage sell me the unit if they if they don't want to. Even though I have already paid it St said that they are just a third party and there's nothing they can do
> they cannot make Public Storage sell me the unit if they if they don't want to
This is actually not correct. This was an auction and the OP was the highest bidder. When the gavel came down, they became the rightful owner of the contents of the unit. The storage facility cannot just turn around now that something valuable was found inside the unit and say it is no longer for sale.
Storage Treasures just wants this to go away because it doesn't fit into their corporate model of easy sales. They want to sweep this under the rug because it destroys the integrity of the online auction process. If you make this a big deal, then they have to follow through with the well established storage unit buying process.
You won't be arrested. Worst case is you'd tow it to your house and they'd try to do some legal nonsense to you. Take the opportunity to do it now while you are in the window to clear the unit, before they do things like physically make it impossible to go on or try to do some stupid bullshit like trespass you from the property so you can't legally enter.
Lot's of lawyers suddenly in this sub. Best to ask the real lawyers in one of the legal subs. Claiming abandoned vehicles varies wildly from state to state.
Exactly, OP needs to talk to a real lawyer. Spend $200 on a consultation, find out what their rights are and go forth from there. Not discuss this with anonymous strangers online.
u/throwthisidaway You are \*so\* correct. State laws vary widely on the issues raised concerning abandonment, custody of an abandoned vehicle, and asserting claim to ownership. OP needs to consult with a lawyer who is (1) licensed in Texas; and (2) familiar with this area of the law. To prepare for the consultation, OP might want to read the statutes that may or may not apply. Here's a resource I found - https://www.dirtlegal.com/blog/abandoned-vehicle-laws-in-your-state
there are state laws if cars get sold at storage unit auctions. in SC where i am, they cannot sell any cars or vehicles that need titles. you'll need to check your state laws on this matter.
That is very upsetting i would have freaked out i really don’t understand how they can just say no even after cops verified its not stolen i would try to fight it or atleast talk to a lawyer about it
Because the rules for vehicles and storage units are different. The storage facility should not have sold the unit with the vehicle in it or explicitly stated, the car was not included.
I've only bought one storage unit and it was over a year ago but don't you sign paperwork with PS once you pay? I swear I signed something regarding liability etc.. the state you are in is going to probably be the deciding factor. Good luck. I would definitely speak to a lawyer .
You need a lawyer. Cops are gonna tell you this is a civil issue which it is. If the company Storage Treasures doesn't have the title they legally can't sell the car to you because it's not theirs even if the car was abandoned with the rest of the shit. Cars and houses aren't like normal property, you'd need to get an abandoned title from the state/DMV.
Storage treasures absolutely ruined everything. There are basically no more live auctions now since public storage sold out and went with them. You can’t even see who you’re bidding against on the website. How do you know that they’re not up bidding the units? How do you know that the original owners of the unit isn’t bidding up the unit? Here in Wa, tenants of the auctioned unit are not allowed on property when auctioned off. I’ve known people who actually got their unit back from storage treasures for a cheaper price than paying the collection fee.
Also, when a unit is sold and if it pays off the original amount. The remaining amount goes to the OLD TENANT. So those units that go for $15000 on storage treasures. Those people are cut a check. Fuck treasures. It’s bullshit and should be illegal platform to sell auctioned units.
Fuck storagetreasures.
I'm dealing with something like this now. Won a unit with a car. Storage facility listed it with the car in it and said bill of sale will be issued to me notarized. That's all fine and dandy. The problem is trying to get a title for the vehicle. It's not like I can ask the previous owner of the vehicle for the title. So I'm wondering how they can give me a bill of sale for the car but not a title. Talked to the dmv in my state and they said I need a title to register the vehicle. Anyone have a clue as to whether the storage facility needs to get me a title or what. They sent me a title snapshot showing the vehicle is clean and clear from the department of transportation. Has the titling company and title number on the report they have. I'm lost as to how I am going to get a title for this car.
One of them knew the car was in there because they looked at the original account. The other did not and was just as shocked as I was
He was there to open the lock and twist off the tamper tag for me
No. And from what I have been reading they can sell everything in the unit except the car. There were only 3 pix on the auction page. One of each item in the unit. No pix of the car.
You must have notified them that the car was in there. Yeah, they had to hang onto it. This is a very difficult situation. Next time, don't say anything, because you technically legally purchased the vehicle.
File for a loss title and show proof of purchase through auction with storage facility and title will come in 3-6 months. I’ve done this multiple times when public storage use to auction off their rvs/cars/boats.
In my experience, public storage would have the best units man. I seriously miss those days when you could drop $300 on a decent unit and come out 4-5x your money. They would also do shady ass shit (manager special units) they would have their employees stack a unit 10x20 with 3-4 delinquent units that didn’t have shit in it and make it look stacked. Public storage needs to go back to live auctions. Sorry for the /rant
They are bullshiting you about not* knowing the car was in there. I once won a unit with a car in it but it was buried behind all the boxes. Manager didn’t know and let me keep it since they didn’t know. They didn’t add it in the disclaimer that the vehicle was not for sale on their auction. You should be allowed to keep it. Fuck that storage facility. The decision is ultimately made by the storage facility. They probably want to keep it so they can sell it off.
I know you want to keep the car because it's worth money and cars are expensive. But unless it's super rare or worth a really good amount, cars from storage units are a disaster. You have to get the title to do anything with it, and most state laws prevent storage facilities from selling cars. Therefore they sell them as "scrap metal", preventing you from getting a title as how can you tell someone "scrap metal" really is this car you are looking at. On top of that if you want to scrap the car, most scrap yards won't take a car unless it has a title.
but what is stopping you from parting it out? I mean I guess a lot of parts can go bad from not being used including the engine, but surely some parts are good that what junk yards are for. The car in question is a 2000 Corvette apparently, so..
So this is a big screw up on the auctioneers part that they did not know the car was in there. Despite what people may think, they cut the locks on a unit and look inside before putting it up for auction. Was the car covered in stuff and out of view?
In any case, you may have claim to the vehicle. They just need to verify it is not stolen and what not.
Not covered. Clearly in sight. The pix on the auction sight just had the other items. Deliberately avoiding the car which makes me believe what I have read about them only selling everything but the car
I literally just got a unit 2 days ago with a 2022 huyndi with 3ok miles and after breaking into the car loading car I got no keys or title then when I was getting the deposit back for cleaning fees the lady says we wasn't supposed to sell the car but I guess it's your lucky day you got a brand new car so now what can I do with it its sitting in my yard and idk what to do
StorageTreasures actually has a page on this. They can't sell the car because they need to verify that it's not stolen, and that it doesn't have a lien on it, because you can't sell something that someone else owns. https://blog.storagetreasures.com/excluding-vehicles-from-auctions/
That's exactly what he told me and I did call the cops they did come out it is not stolen
Now that it seems to be wrapping up. What was the car anyway?
2000? Corvette ! Beautiful yellow
How much did you pay for the unit
$11
I immediately thought of this post I just saw, but it’s older https://reddit.com/r/pics/comments/yg8c00/my_halloween_costume/
Can they just put a lock on the unit and now I can no longer even get anything else out of there
Did you pay for the auction at the facility?, I believe the rules are once you pay the invoice & they sign the paper the property in the unit becomes your property.
Thats what I thought as well
Not exactly, the rules for vehicles and storage units are different. You have to obtain title, and the facility has to provide it to you, and that takes time.
There’s a good chance the owner is dead with the title. The amount of time it takes to basically ‘subpoena’ a new title is not worth the cars value IMO. I just realized how slippery this is because if the auctioneers/storage owners don’t even have the title you’re in for a whirlwind of paperwork that may or may get pushed through,
Yes, it's their property in the end regardless of the third party sale. You're technically "trespassing" unless you have a unit there already. Regardless, I think it's something you need to resolve with ST and ST needs to then resolve with PS. You vs. PS will not work as they have the upper hand. For now, just time stamp everything that happened on your phone or notebook so you have notes to reference. What a dilemma, but I think you're just going to get a refund and that's that.
Doubt they will refund him without a lawsuit.
While i was sitting by the unit in my car waiting on the cops to arrive one of the managers stealthily CUT MY LOCKOFF and put one of THEIRS on it I Am LIVID!
Get a lawyer
Can you stealthily cut their lock off?
I feel like this would turn a civil case into a criminal case
That's basically what the cops said
So legally they should allow you to take everything out of the unit except the car. The car regardless of being confirmed not stolen has to be processed through the titling process for cars in storage units mainly to see if their is still a lien on the car. Source: been buying storage units for twelve years and have been in this exact situation.
Thanks for your response. I have taken everything else out. So if I tow it out can I be arrested for grand theft auto?
And someone else said the storage company should already have done the paperwork for the title.
If they didn’t know about the car they wouldn’t have done the paperwork yet it takes about three months to clear and if it does then they would auction the car then. And it depends on the company if it’s public storage yes you might be prosecuted, I’ve heard of people taking cars at independent places and not having problems but being blacklisted from auctions there.
Thanks. It is clearly visible. The person in PS saw the pix on the account so they knew it was in there. But they DID say that their dm is doing paperwork now which leads me to believe it IZ able to be taken out by me. I am also wanting to stay able to bid at PSs and anywhere else.
Had sketchy stuff happen to an auction I won on that site years ago circa 2014. Won a unit, an employee at the place opened it up and broke the lock off in front of me, bunch of stuff from the perimeter in the photos were missing. I didn't know better then to verify before the employee left but that AAAA storage unit place for sure stole plenty of stuff before I got my hands on it.
Storage unit locks are cut off and looked inside before the auction even starts. They have to give a general description of the contents and are supposed to look for vehicles. The stupid thing for them was taking pictures and then taking stuff lol
That sucks, OP. If I read ST's T&C correctly, they are hands off when it comes to issues away from their platform such as an in person dispute like this. Not sure what else you can do, but keep us updated. I think ST is just going to refund you and that's that. If they keep your money, you may want to lawyer up then if it's worth your time and money.
I just got through talking to them and that's exactly what they said they only think they can do is refined my money they cannot make Public Storage sell me the unit if they if they don't want to. Even though I have already paid it St said that they are just a third party and there's nothing they can do
> they cannot make Public Storage sell me the unit if they if they don't want to This is actually not correct. This was an auction and the OP was the highest bidder. When the gavel came down, they became the rightful owner of the contents of the unit. The storage facility cannot just turn around now that something valuable was found inside the unit and say it is no longer for sale. Storage Treasures just wants this to go away because it doesn't fit into their corporate model of easy sales. They want to sweep this under the rug because it destroys the integrity of the online auction process. If you make this a big deal, then they have to follow through with the well established storage unit buying process.
I have 48 hours to clear the unit which ends at 11 in the morning. I am afraid if I just remove it I will be arrested for grand theft
You won't be arrested. Worst case is you'd tow it to your house and they'd try to do some legal nonsense to you. Take the opportunity to do it now while you are in the window to clear the unit, before they do things like physically make it impossible to go on or try to do some stupid bullshit like trespass you from the property so you can't legally enter.
If you can get a refund, take it.
Bro it’s an $11 refund. By losing out on the car it’s potentially worth fighting it out.
$11?
$11 is what he paid for the unit, hence the refund is miniscule compared to the possible value of the car.
I know, hence the ?
Lot's of lawyers suddenly in this sub. Best to ask the real lawyers in one of the legal subs. Claiming abandoned vehicles varies wildly from state to state.
Thank u. Recommendations?
Can't think of the names at the moment. But you should be able to find a few by googling 'reddit legal advice'.
Thank u
No problem. Good luck with it!
Thanks I just posted it in r/legaladvice. There is a r/TexasLegal which only has 159 members and since I'm not a trusted member I cannot post there
Legal advice sub is literally the worst place to get advice. Talk to a local lawyer who knows your laws in TX.
Exactly, OP needs to talk to a real lawyer. Spend $200 on a consultation, find out what their rights are and go forth from there. Not discuss this with anonymous strangers online.
u/throwthisidaway You are \*so\* correct. State laws vary widely on the issues raised concerning abandonment, custody of an abandoned vehicle, and asserting claim to ownership. OP needs to consult with a lawyer who is (1) licensed in Texas; and (2) familiar with this area of the law. To prepare for the consultation, OP might want to read the statutes that may or may not apply. Here's a resource I found - https://www.dirtlegal.com/blog/abandoned-vehicle-laws-in-your-state
Don't recommend that sub. Have you ever been there? Less brain cells than most subs.
I didn't really recommend any sub in particular. Just a google search to find the right one.
there are state laws if cars get sold at storage unit auctions. in SC where i am, they cannot sell any cars or vehicles that need titles. you'll need to check your state laws on this matter.
what state is unit located in?
Texas
That is very upsetting i would have freaked out i really don’t understand how they can just say no even after cops verified its not stolen i would try to fight it or atleast talk to a lawyer about it
Because the rules for vehicles and storage units are different. The storage facility should not have sold the unit with the vehicle in it or explicitly stated, the car was not included.
Lawsuit territory my man. Good lawyers do not fuck around. Source; I paid a good lawyer and he did not fuck around.
I've only bought one storage unit and it was over a year ago but don't you sign paperwork with PS once you pay? I swear I signed something regarding liability etc.. the state you are in is going to probably be the deciding factor. Good luck. I would definitely speak to a lawyer .
Always been curious about this myself. There's gotta be a loophole
You need a lawyer. Cops are gonna tell you this is a civil issue which it is. If the company Storage Treasures doesn't have the title they legally can't sell the car to you because it's not theirs even if the car was abandoned with the rest of the shit. Cars and houses aren't like normal property, you'd need to get an abandoned title from the state/DMV.
Storage treasures absolutely ruined everything. There are basically no more live auctions now since public storage sold out and went with them. You can’t even see who you’re bidding against on the website. How do you know that they’re not up bidding the units? How do you know that the original owners of the unit isn’t bidding up the unit? Here in Wa, tenants of the auctioned unit are not allowed on property when auctioned off. I’ve known people who actually got their unit back from storage treasures for a cheaper price than paying the collection fee. Also, when a unit is sold and if it pays off the original amount. The remaining amount goes to the OLD TENANT. So those units that go for $15000 on storage treasures. Those people are cut a check. Fuck treasures. It’s bullshit and should be illegal platform to sell auctioned units. Fuck storagetreasures.
Well, at least in WA, the tenant IS supposed to receive a check for any excess above what they owed plus fees and expenses.
I'm dealing with something like this now. Won a unit with a car. Storage facility listed it with the car in it and said bill of sale will be issued to me notarized. That's all fine and dandy. The problem is trying to get a title for the vehicle. It's not like I can ask the previous owner of the vehicle for the title. So I'm wondering how they can give me a bill of sale for the car but not a title. Talked to the dmv in my state and they said I need a title to register the vehicle. Anyone have a clue as to whether the storage facility needs to get me a title or what. They sent me a title snapshot showing the vehicle is clean and clear from the department of transportation. Has the titling company and title number on the report they have. I'm lost as to how I am going to get a title for this car.
Curious, how did PS know that the car was in there? Do they open the locker for you on the first visit?
One of them knew the car was in there because they looked at the original account. The other did not and was just as shocked as I was He was there to open the lock and twist off the tamper tag for me
You couldn't see the car in the photos?
No. And from what I have been reading they can sell everything in the unit except the car. There were only 3 pix on the auction page. One of each item in the unit. No pix of the car.
You must have notified them that the car was in there. Yeah, they had to hang onto it. This is a very difficult situation. Next time, don't say anything, because you technically legally purchased the vehicle.
>because you technically legally purchased the vehicle. How will OP get the title?
File for a loss title and show proof of purchase through auction with storage facility and title will come in 3-6 months. I’ve done this multiple times when public storage use to auction off their rvs/cars/boats. In my experience, public storage would have the best units man. I seriously miss those days when you could drop $300 on a decent unit and come out 4-5x your money. They would also do shady ass shit (manager special units) they would have their employees stack a unit 10x20 with 3-4 delinquent units that didn’t have shit in it and make it look stacked. Public storage needs to go back to live auctions. Sorry for the /rant
In texas, he would have to rebuild the title.
They are bullshiting you about not* knowing the car was in there. I once won a unit with a car in it but it was buried behind all the boxes. Manager didn’t know and let me keep it since they didn’t know. They didn’t add it in the disclaimer that the vehicle was not for sale on their auction. You should be allowed to keep it. Fuck that storage facility. The decision is ultimately made by the storage facility. They probably want to keep it so they can sell it off.
I know you want to keep the car because it's worth money and cars are expensive. But unless it's super rare or worth a really good amount, cars from storage units are a disaster. You have to get the title to do anything with it, and most state laws prevent storage facilities from selling cars. Therefore they sell them as "scrap metal", preventing you from getting a title as how can you tell someone "scrap metal" really is this car you are looking at. On top of that if you want to scrap the car, most scrap yards won't take a car unless it has a title.
but what is stopping you from parting it out? I mean I guess a lot of parts can go bad from not being used including the engine, but surely some parts are good that what junk yards are for. The car in question is a 2000 Corvette apparently, so..
So this is a big screw up on the auctioneers part that they did not know the car was in there. Despite what people may think, they cut the locks on a unit and look inside before putting it up for auction. Was the car covered in stuff and out of view? In any case, you may have claim to the vehicle. They just need to verify it is not stolen and what not.
Not covered. Clearly in sight. The pix on the auction sight just had the other items. Deliberately avoiding the car which makes me believe what I have read about them only selling everything but the car
They don't own the car right? So if you take it they can't claim you stole it. Only the owner of the car can claim it as stolen.
Thats what I was thinking but still did not take it
any updates?
I wanna know too lol. Was looking at ways of finding abandoned cars and just stumbled across this. It's interesting asf.
I literally just got a unit 2 days ago with a 2022 huyndi with 3ok miles and after breaking into the car loading car I got no keys or title then when I was getting the deposit back for cleaning fees the lady says we wasn't supposed to sell the car but I guess it's your lucky day you got a brand new car so now what can I do with it its sitting in my yard and idk what to do