This isn’t so much as a review but a tale off caution for anyone considering to utilize the services of South Bank Secure Storage” locations include California, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and this location Colorado.
My husband and I rented a self-storage unit near us that due to some very unfortunate circumstances are being denied access to a storage until owned and operated by 21st Century Storage LLC, otherwise named South Bank Secure Storage. First we are not in default of payment; the issue came about by our remaining on the property after the respective hours told to us after we violated them despite the website highlights “24 hour access” and failure of any type of posted signage and at the property location that would state otherwise.
The events that have gotten us to this point are as follows:
Sept. 1st: Rental of 10x20 unit under promotional offer for first month’s rent, signed the contract and was given our $$ lock
Sept. 5th: Unloading belongings into unit until just past midnight
Sept. 7th: My husband was met by onsite manager”Nico” when entering thru access gate and told that we were on the property till after midnight and we can’t be doing that. Have to be off property by 10pm
Sept. 8th: At approx. 8pm the pitman arm on our truck broke while in front of the unit we had rented on Sept. 1st. I immediately called our road side service for a vehicle tow and second called the facilities office and advised them of the breakdown and that I had contacted our road side service for a tow. Unfortunately we live in a rural area where its not easy to receive services like that easily more over with inclement weather as we were having of pouring rain for 24+ hours. My husband and I were doing everything we possibly could to get our vehicle off the property, we were within 20-30 yards of the gate when we were met with two police officers that had been called out by the manager. We left the property leaving our vehicle there, after we had left the property the manager called for the vehicle to be towed upon reaching the company that my service was contracting to complete the tow, he was advised that they had been contacted by my insurance and the call would be done as their first call of the morning. The manager unhappy with that continued to call until he was able to secure a company that would come out. The tow driver contacted me by phone from the property requesting a set of keys and advised that the owner was paying for the tow because he wanted the vehicle off his property. “Nico” was in the background fitting that we were not allowed to be there, the driver asked me to meet him at the gate. Upon arriving to meet the tow truck driver the police had returned after receiving another call out. The vehicle was towed and parked off the property to the street where it remained till we arrived with the tow service we had secured thru our insurance.
Sept. 14th: We were denied access to the facility to our unit as our gate code had been disabled, we attempted knocking on the office door with no response and the number listed for emergencies we found in the window was not answered until our 3rd repeat call. When answered we immediately advised that some much needed medication had inadvertently been left in the unit and a request was made to permit access so the medication could be retrieved. We summarily received a quick short resounding “NO”, needing medication, we responded “you’re going to deny access for a necessary medication” with a snickered response “yes” a quick pause “come back during business hours”. Completely dumbfounded as to how this grown man had been behaving worse than a toddler at the height of “the terrible two’s”. Such extreme and irrationally reactions to two different events that were one at its worst possible could only be noted as “missing curfew” and the second a terrible time but every human attempt was being made to rectify the problem, there’s just nothing that you would have on hand to secure a pitman arm to the steering linkage long enough in one failsafe attempt enabling you to steer a truck pulling a trailer around some semi tight corners, rather it was secure, steer, fail, re-secure (not unlike rinse &repeat) please don’t mention that it was pouring rain and bitterly cold.
Due to the inaccessibility to our unit at the hands of “Nico” an emergency room visit was required for assistance with an asthma attack, made recently worse from the pour air quality resulting from the fires of late.
Sept. 15th: I received a phone call with the resulting voicemail containing misinformation about being told “in front of the cops and everyone” we could only return during business hours, curious to whom was advised being the police, my husband, Nico and myself were never within a close enough proximity of each other to have any such disclosure been given, any form of rental agreement had never been provided to myself in anything other than the paper he stuck through the office window for my signature. And lastly now a demand of $300 for the tow bill, a result of a grown mans childish fit, that without payment of we will vehemently be denied access to our belongings, that I will gladly load up and remove from the property.