§ 182 — Self-storage facilities; lien

§ 182. Self-storage facilities; lien. 1. Definitions. As used in this\narticle:\n (a) "Self-storage facility" means any real property or a portion\nthereof that is designed and used for the purpose of occupying storage\nspace by occupants who are to have access thereto for the purpose of\nstoring and removing personal property. The owner of a self-storage\nfacility shall not be deemed to be a warehouseman as defined in the\nuniform commercial code. Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this\nsubdivision, if an owner issues any warehouse receipt, bill of lading,\nor other document of title for the personal property stored, the owner\nand the occupant are subject to the provisions of the uniform commercial\ncode and the provisions of this section shall not be applicable.\n (b) "Owner" means a person, partnership or corporation which operates\na self-storage facility, an agent, or any other person authorized by the\nowner to manage the facility or to receive storage fees from an occupant\nunder an occupancy agreement. A warehouseman may be an owner to the\nextent that any part of the building is operated as a self-storage\nfacility.\n (c) "Occupant" means a person, entitled to the use of the storage\nspace at a self-storage facility under a written occupancy agreement or\nhis successor or assignee, to the exclusion of others including the\nowner except as provided in this section or the occupancy agreement.\n (d) "Occupancy agreement" means any written agreement, electronic or\nprinted, that establishes or modifies the terms, conditions, rules or\nany other provisions concerning the use and occupancy of a self-storage\nfacility and any one or more individual storage spaces therein.\n (e) "Personal property" means movable property not affixed to land and\nincludes, but is not limited to, goods, merchandise and household items.\n (f) "Electronic mail" shall mean an electronic message or an\nexecutable program or computer file that contains an image of a message\nthat is transmitted between two or more computers or electronic\nterminals. Such term shall include electronic messages that are\ntransmitted within or between computer networks.\n (g) "Last known address" shall mean the street address, post office\nbox address or electronic mail address provided by the occupant in the\noccupancy agreement, or a subsequent address provided by the occupant\npursuant to the occupancy agreement.\n (h) "Verified mail" shall mean any method of mailing that is offered\nby the United States Postal Service or a private delivery service that\nprovides evidence of mailing including, but not limited to, a first\nclass mailing with certificate of mailing.\n 2. Required disclosures. (a) The owner shall be required to provide\nprior to allowing occupancy a written occupancy agreement which shall be\ndated and signed by the occupant and the owner or his duly authorized\nagent, and be written or printed in a size equal to at least ten-point\nbold type and which shall set forth the following information:\n (i) name and address of owner and occupant and electronic mail address\nof owner and occupant should the occupant choose to be contacted via\nelectronic mail;\n (ii) street address of self-storage facility where goods will be\nstored;\n (iii) the actual monthly occupancy charge for the particular goods to\nbe stored expressed in dollars;\n (iv) an itemization of other charges imposed or which may be imposed\nin connection with the occupancy, a description of each such charge,\nwhether the charge is mandatory or optional, and the amount of each\ncharge expressed in dollars;\n (v) a statement of any limitation of damages limiting the amount of\nthe owner's liability in case of loss or damage of the goods setting\nforth a specific liability per room size or dollar amount beyond which\nthe owner will not be liable; provided that if damages are so limited, a\nstatement shall be included that such liability may on the written\nrequest of the occupant and if accepted in writing by the owner at the\ntime of signing such occupancy agreement or within a reasonable time\nthereafter be increased on part or all of the goods stored, in which\nevent increased rates may be charged based on such increased valuation.\nThe rates charged for an increased valuation shall be set forth and a\npre-addressed request form to enable the occupant to request an\nincreased valuation shall be provided; and\n (vi) any other material terms and conditions of the occupancy\ntransaction.\n (b) Every occupancy agreement as required by this section shall\ninclude the business address and telephone number to be used by the\noccupant in making inquiries concerning the occupancy transaction.\n (c) Every occupancy agreement as required by this section shall\ncontain the following conspicuous notices: (i) "Notice: The monthly\noccupancy charge and other charges stated in this agreement are the\nactual charges you must pay"; (ii) "Notice: You may choose to be\ncontacted for legal matters related to late or lien notices, via\nelectronic mail by providing your electronic mail address in at least\ntwo locations within the occupancy agreement".\n 3. Unlawful detention of goods. It shall constitute an unlawful\ndetention of goods for an owner to refuse to surrender goods stored by\nhim for an occupant upon payment by the occupant of the occupancy fees\npermitted by this section.\n 4. Private right of action. (a) Any occupant damaged by an unlawful\ndetention of his goods or any other violation of this section may bring\nan action for recovery of damages and the return of his goods. Judgment\nmay be entered in an amount not to exceed three times the actual damages\nplus reasonable attorneys fees.\n (b) Nothing in this section shall be construed so as to nullify or\nimpair any right or rights which a buyer may have against a seller at\ncommon law, by statute or otherwise.\n 5. Violation and penalties. Whenever there shall be a violation of\nthis section, an application may be made by the attorney general in the\nname of the people of the state to a court or justice having\njurisdiction by a special proceeding to issue an injunction, and upon\nnotice to the defendant of not less than five days, to enjoin and\nrestrain the continuance of such violations; and if it shall appear to\nthe satisfaction of the court or justice that the defendant has, in\nfact, violated this section an injunction may be issued by such court or\njustice, enjoining and restraining any further violation, without\nrequiring proof that any person has, in fact, been injured or damaged\nthereby. In any such proceeding, the court may make allowances to the\nattorney general as provided in paragraph six of subdivision (a) of\nsection eighty-three hundred three of the civil practice law and rules,\nand direct restitution. Whenever the court shall determine that a\nviolation of this section has occurred, the court may impose a civil\npenalty of not more than one thousand dollars for each violation. In\nconnection with any such proposed application, the attorney general is\nauthorized to take proof and make a determination of the relevant facts\nand to issue subpoenas in accordance with the civil practice law and\nrules.\n 6. Lien. The owner of a self-storage facility has a lien upon all\npersonal property stored at a self-storage facility for occupancy fees\nor other charges, present or future, in relation to the personal\nproperty and for expenses necessary for its preservation or expenses\nreasonably incurred in its sale or other disposition pursuant to law and\nany other charges pursuant to the occupancy agreement. The lien provided\nfor in this section is superior to any other lien or security interest.\nThe lien attaches as of the date the personal property is brought to the\nself-storage facility.\n 7. Enforcement of lien. (a) An owner's lien may be enforced by public\nor private sale of the occupant's goods that remain in the self-storage\nfacility, in block, or in parcel, at any time or place and on any terms\nwhich are commercially reasonable after notice to all persons known to\nclaim an interest in the goods. The notice shall include an itemized\nstatement of the amount due, the description of the property subject to\nthe lien, the nature of the proposed sale, a demand for payment within a\nspecified time not less than thirty days from mailing of the notice and\na conspicuous statement that unless the claimant pays within that time\nthe goods will be advertised for sale and sold at public or private sale\nin a commercially reasonable manner. The notice shall further include\nthe time and place of any public or private sale and it shall state that\nany person claiming an interest in the goods is entitled to bring a\nproceeding hereunder within ten days of the service of the notice if he\ndisputes the validity of the lien, or the amount claimed. The notice\nshall be personally delivered to the occupant, or sent by registered or\ncertified mail to the occupant's last known address, or sent by verified\nmail and electronic mail to the occupant's last known address. Any\nnotice made pursuant to this section and sent by verified mail shall be\nsent to the last known address provided by the occupant, pursuant to the\noccupancy agreement. Any notice made pursuant to this section and sent\nby electronic mail shall only be effective if: (i) the occupancy\nagreement states that the occupant has consented to receive late or lien\nnotices by electronic mail; and (ii) the occupant has provided the\noccupant's electronic mail address in at least two locations within the\noccupancy agreement.\n (b) Any notice given pursuant to this section is deemed delivered when\nit is: (i) properly addressed to the last known address, and (ii) either\nsent by registered, certified or verified mail and evidence of mailing\nis received, or sent by electronic mail and either a non-automated\nresponse to the electronic mail is received or a receipt of delivery to\nthe electronic mail is received.\n 8. Pricing. The fact that a better price could have been obtained by a\nsale at a different time or in a different method from that selected by\nthe owner is not of itself sufficient to establish that the sale was not\nmade in a commercially reasonable manner. If the owner either sells the\ngoods in the usual manner in any recognized market therefor, or if he\nsells at the price current in such market at the time of his sale, or if\nhe has otherwise sold in conformity with commercially reasonable\npractices among dealers in the type of goods sold, he has sold in a\ncommercially reasonable manner. A sale of more goods than apparently\nnecessary to be offered to insure satisfaction of the obligation is not\ncommercially reasonable except in cases covered by the preceding\nsentence.\n 9. Special proceeding. The special proceeding may be brought in any\ncourt which would have jurisdiction to render a judgment for a sum equal\nto the amount of the lien. If the person shall show that the owner is\nnot entitled to claim a lien in the goods, or that all or part of the\namount claimed by the owner has not been properly charged to the account\nof such person, or, as the case may be, that all or part of such amount\nexceeds the fair and reasonable value of the services performed by the\nowner, the court shall direct the entry of judgment cancelling the lien\nor reducing the amount claimed thereunder accordingly. If the owner\nshall establish the validity of the lien, in whole or in part, the\njudgment shall fix the amount thereof, and shall provide that the sale\nmay proceed upon the expiration of five days after service of a copy of\nthe judgment together with notice of entry thereof upon the person,\nunless the goods are redeemed prior thereto. If the lien is cancelled,\nthe judgment shall provide that, upon service of a copy of the judgment\ntogether with notice of entry thereof upon the owner, the person shall\nbe entitled to possession of the property.\n