Extra Space Storage
Burglary, Negligent, Terrible Security, Apathetic

I was going on a trip to Europe for a few months and I put all my belongings in storage there. The woman working there assured me that there hadn't ever been a theft there and she'd worked there for over 10 year but I should get the insurance anyway. I bought the "package" which included a lock and discounted insurance for the first month. The lock wasn't in it's package like the rest on the wall but I didn't think twice about it at the time. There are large screens in the front office which show several areas of the storage space on camera.

After all my belongings were in, about 10 days before I would leave, my space had been broken into. The lock wasn't forced, and nothing appeared unusual from the outside. For this type of lock you need to remove the key in the locked position. My space was locked when I opened it and noticed that my stuff had been all shuffled around and my most expensive items had been stolen. The woman working there (same one) didn't act surprised nor was she helpful.in fact she often ignored me while she talked on the phone to her friend.

The monitors showing the cameras in the building weren't helpful because the cameras are looking at the elevator, not the spaces. She said there should have been a log of my door alarm going off, but there wasn't. No log. And oddly, one of the first things the woman said to me when I said I had been robbed was that the key's can't be copied for their locks. She said this right away, claiming that I could go to the locksmith next door and ask whether they could be copied and he'd say no. Obviously they can be copied.in all likelihood, she copied my key before giving it to me and erased the record of the door alarm going off.

The insurance company said they couldn't do anything because there were no signs of forced entry. They didn't even bother sending out someone to look even though they said they would. The woman at Extra Space Storage said a technician would come to investigate whether the alarm on my space worked. They never came. I asked her repeatedly in the week and a half after the burglary took place and she kept saying that I had to be patient.

When I talked to the police, they said I wasn't the only person who has been burglarized there in the past week and that they've been burglarized many times in the past and refused to turn over the video tapes. I talked to the regional manager of Extra Space Storage and all he did was defend the woman working there. Contacting their corporate office did nothing either. For a corporate chain, I'm appalled at how terrible this company has been.

Their security is horrendous. The flashing monitors and cameras at the entrance are all show. Anybody can walk in there during the middle of the day with bolt cutters and steal anything they want. Nothing is safe there. If someone used bolt cutters to remove the lock, I'm sure the insurance company also would refuse to pay any compensation.

If this wasn't an inside job, the lack of security and complete laziness and incompetence of the employees is a crime in itself.

I'm out $4000 on top of the cost of renting a truck and moving all my remaining belongings to another storage space. This is by far one of the worst companies I have ever used.

If you have been burglarized at Extra Space Storage on 4400 W Addison, contact Detective Molane at area 5 property crimes 312-746-8362. Keep trying if you can't get through.

Company: Extra Space Storage
Country: USA
State: Illinois
City: Chicago
Address: 4400 W. Addison
Phone: 7736858080

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