Legal Question in Consumer Law in North Carolina

I rented a storage unit in my name for myself and my ex-wife (now). I signed the rental contract on the line marked Occupant and gave them the initial payment. A few months later - my ex-wife and I seperated and I went down to the Storage unit to attempt to get in and found that the gate access code had been changed and there was another lock on the unit. My ex-wife had come down to Storage facility ( female manager is her friend) and told her that that she wanted to change the contract for the unit and did not want me to have access to it. Moore Storage discarded the contract that I had signed as Occupant - wrote up another contract for my ex-wife and changed the codes and will not allow me access to the unit which is rightfully mine. They allowed her to do this without contacting me and clearly violated my rights and the contract that I signed earlier that year. When I contacted the manager - she told me that my ex-wife had come to her and told her that the unit was always for her and that my signature on the contract meant nothing. When we were together - the rental fee was paid by my ex-wife with OUR money and I had my personal property in the unit and had allowed my ex-wife to place some of hers in there as well. I have a signed contract which lists me as the only Occupant and the Storage facilitydisregarded my rights and allowed my property to be taken. I told them that no spouse has the power unless granted in court to end or modify a written contract/agreement entered into by the other spouse. Is this breach of contract? What actions should I take?


Asked on 2/27/13, 7:47 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Kenneth Love Ken Love Law

As long as you have the original contract with your signature on it, you may have a breach of contrac tissue.

You should inventory all of your items in the unit and speak to an attorney about suing them.

Now the problems:

1. If you have been separated for a while....you say ex-wife, I will assume a divorce, which means it has been at least a year since you two were together. If this is the case, who has been paying the storage unit?

2. The storage company may argue that the rent went unpaid and they took possession of the unit and sold its contents at public auction. They are required to send notice before doing so, to your last known address. So if they are going to say they did this and if you left the marital home and never updated your address you may have an issue.

In any event, speak to a lawyer, it may be that your wife owes you the property.

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Answered on 2/27/13, 7:59 am


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