Extra Space Storage — Local services in San Antonio

I did my due diligence to find a place that I can rent online and NOT have to pay for insurance, I am putting just little extras from the house in there nothing of any real value. I wanted to be able to order it online and just show up and get in. That was not the case. When I get there I need to get in the door and had to wait 20 min behind a lady who was apparently getting everything all set up from the beginning. THE WHOLE POINT OF ORDERING ONLINE WAS TO SKIP THE LINE!!!!! That did not happen at all.

Finally got the door open and head to my spot. I open the door and as soon as you step INSIDE the space, there is a puddle of water. THE WHOLE POINT OF STORAGE is to protect your stuff from the elements. I can just cove my stuff with a tarp in the back yard if that is the case. I go back to the office and tell them they set me up with rained out space.

Her answer to me was, "we'll, it has been raining." I was blown away. Yes it has been raining, but if you are selling storage spaces that get RAIN in them you will do doubt get mold and mildew on your stored items and they seem to think that is just supposed to happen when it rains. WOW!

She said she can move me to a different unit, this is when the insurance upsell begins. Again the whole reason I went with this company was the price and the fact that the web site said insurance was not required. I was able to place the order online and do all everything that I needed to until I came into the location, that's when they say they can not move me into another unit unless I pay for insurance. When I explained that the web site clearly said other wise she said (and sounded proud of the fact) this location get broken into a lot, you HAVE TO have insurance to be here.

I asked her to get me into a unit that I paid for, no upsells and she said she wouldn't. I then asked for a refund and I was asked to sign something she called a notice to vacate which was odd because I never took possession of any property at all, she did not in fact give me a refund, I have a prepaid credit card and when refunds are made they are put back on the card instantly. This didn't happen. Now I have my family vehicle full and no place to put it. I have to wait to see if the money is actually returned in DAYS as she said it would be.

Lying to your customers on the web site is terrible. Having them pay for services that you don't really intend to provide is even worse. Having them fill their vehicle come down to your location and then telling them unless they pay more you can just leave and we will hang on to your money for a while, well, that is just the worst. I HIGHLY RECCOMMEND YOU NEVER DEAL WITH THESE PEOLPE - EVER!

Update: over a week later and still no refund, and no contact from the company in any way. DO NOT DO BUSINESS WITH THIS COMPANY! I would even say it's just one location but CORPORATE WAS INVOLVED and their choice in the matter was to do nothing to rectify the situation. Doing business with this company cost me a lot of money way more than the refund they refused to give. I ended up getting a place around the corner that did NOT REQUIRE insurance which was surprising after Life Storage spent so much time telling me the area is a hot spot for break-ins. Apparently A-1 is able to keep their property under control better they also offer a 10X10 for less than Life Storage's 5X10. Life Storage is not a company you want to...

What started off as a great experience ended up turning horrible. At the very least, 'Customer Care' and the other office I dialed a few days later (last 4- 0480) are nowhere near on the same page.

I called Friday, 29 May, and spoke to an individual (don't remember the name, but was a female voice with a strong north-east accent) and informed her that I need a place to store my car for a year. She told me it's no problem, the units are not climate-controlled (preferred, but not a deal-breaker to me), and that I just need to complete the online registration to confirm my unit. Even gave me the special which was one month free. No problems so far...

I go to the online registration to complete on Monday and, when the form asked if I'm storing a vehicle here, I checked yes and got an error that this unit is not for vehicle storage. Weird, but figured I'd call the company and get it sorted out. Still not a big deal to me.

Called Monday and no answer, called again this morning using that -0480 number and spoke to a different individual who informed me the unit doesn't have a high ceiling - still not a big deal since I have a car with plenty of clearance anyways. The problem was when she told me I am supposed to come into their office in-person to give a copy of title and registration, as well as pay taxes on the unit since I'm storing my vehicle there. I asked why wasn't I told this earlier and she said 'Customer Care usually doesn't divulge all information up front.' ....is that because they don't know about all the details? Are they hiding those details? Either way, in response, I asked her to cancel my reservation.

In all honesty, I probably would have still rented here had all of this information been given up front. Now that I think about it, I imagine any storage unit housing a vehicle would need to be taxed if it's a state/local law (though I'm still going to do some research on this). But the fact that it's all last-minute knowledge and comes only as a surprise to me, as the customer?

I will say the attitudes of both individuals I talked to were at least civil and professional. But that's about the only positive part of...

TO START, THE MANAGER DENISE, IS THE ONLY HOPE THIS LOCATION HAS!! I have a previously closed a BBB complaint with this company. Initially I was satisfied with the resolution. However, since then the communication issues continue, more damage was discovered and information about the unethical practices of management have come to light. I have been working very well with the store manager but communication to her from both above and below her is unsatisfactory. However, this is the least of my newfound concerns. When I originally brought the concern of rodent infestation in my storage unit the reply from both clerks was to file a claim with my renters insurance. Due to life circumstances, I was not able to move into my new storage unit until 10 NOV 2018. It was at this time that I was able to assess the damage of my belongings. I had a full size mattress and box spring in the back of the unit that was saturated with rat urine and covered in rat feces. The pre-tax cost of this loss was $515. I contacted my insurance company and was informed that rodent damage is not covered. I contacted several other companies that provide renters insurance and they told me the same thing. So, now what? To add insult to injury, I have discovered that many of the units are damaged giving easier access to rodent infestation according to the company's pest control contractor. It was recommended to the area manager, Chris De Los Santos, to close these due to damage and not to rent them but he ordered them to be cleaned and rented out with the knowledge that rodent infestation would continue to be a problem. This strikes me as unethical to rent out units where people store their personal goods. Some of these belongings may be valuable and others may be priceless sentimental items. My items are mostly sentimental. Fortunately, none of that was damaged. The only reason I am staying with this company is due to the manager's sincerity with me and work ethic. She continues to be stuck between the customer and the greed...