Complaints
This profile includes complaints for SmartStop Self Storage's headquarters and its corporate-owned locations. To view all corporate locations, see
Customer Complaints Summary
- 105 total complaints in the last 3 years.
- 50 complaints closed in the last 12 months.
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Submit a ComplaintThe complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.
Initial Complaint
Date:09/08/2023
Type:Status:AnsweredMore info
Complaint statuses
- Resolved:
- The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
- Unresolved:
- The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
- Answered:
- The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
- Unanswered:
- The business failed to respond to the dispute.
- Unpursuable:
- BBB is unable to locate the business.
Smartstop took over bluebird storage I have been disputing the exuberant increased rent on the storage unit. I have expressed my concerns to the manager and have asked that they honour the initial rental agreement with Bluebird storage.
Business Response
Date: 09/13/2023
Thank you for reaching out to us, ****************. Our district manager has contacted you and offered a one-time credit of $52 + HST as an act of good customer service. Please understand that rental agreements with SmartStop are strictly month-to-month, therefore, rates are not guaranteed for any specified amount of time. SmartStop informs customers of rent changes by the method of communication selected on their rental agreement at least thirty (30) days in advance. SmartStop regularly reviews its rental rates and makes rental rate changes to align with current market conditions. SmartStop cannot guarantee rates will not be changed.Initial Complaint
Date:08/31/2023
Type:Status:AnsweredMore info
Complaint statuses
- Resolved:
- The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
- Unresolved:
- The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
- Answered:
- The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
- Unanswered:
- The business failed to respond to the dispute.
- Unpursuable:
- BBB is unable to locate the business.
I began renting 2 spots here almost 3 years ago. Since signing the agreements, every 3-4 months they send a letter saying their costs have gone up and so theyre raising the rate on my spaces. At this point theyve doubled my initial rates from $205 to now $418 on a 10x15, and $150 to $284 on a 5x10 space (neither starting rate was a 1st-time introductory rate; the promo at the time was a free 1st month). The place is clean and the staff is nice enough, but this feels like a scam and Ill be moving on and putting SmartStop in the rear view.PS: They also require you to purchase a special lock from themBusiness Response
Date: 09/06/2023
Thank you, **************, for reaching out.
Our district manager has contacted you and offered a one-time price adjustment.Please understand that rental agreements with SmartStop are strictly month-to-month, therefore, rates are not guaranteed for any specified amount of time. With regard to rent changes, SmartStop informs customers of rent changes by the method of communication selected on their rental agreement at least thirty (30) days in advance. SmartStop regularly reviews its rental rates and makes rental rate changes to align with current market conditions. Proper notice is given on all adjustments. SmartStop cannot guarantee rates will not be revised based on market changes. Thank you.
Initial Complaint
Date:08/19/2023
Type:Status:ResolvedMore info
Complaint statuses
- Resolved:
- The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
- Unresolved:
- The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
- Answered:
- The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
- Unanswered:
- The business failed to respond to the dispute.
- Unpursuable:
- BBB is unable to locate the business.
This complaint is regarding the facilities on 7 ****************** in North York that was previously a BlueBird facility. I gave notice on June 29th that I would be moving out by June 30th and the representative I spoke to said that he stopped the payment that was scheduled to come out on July 1st (the billing date). My credit card was charged the full amount for the month and a few days later I received a refund for $17.42 less than the full amount that was taken out. When I called and inquired the rep told me that I was being charged for 3 days as it was a holiday and my unit was closed out on July 4th. This makes absolute no sense as I had already given the representative my date of move out BEFORE the holiday and they can check in their cameras when the last time was that I used my code to enter the facility. I have called 4 times and visited the store in person to get this resolved and all Im hearing is that the regional director has decided not to pay me back the refund meanwhile he has never contacted me or tried to reach out and get this matter resolved. When I went to the store, the agents did not have any complaint resolution for me and keep telling me someone will get in touch and they dont. I am not paying for services I did not use. That is theft and not okay when I gave proper notice of when I would move out. There is proof in their system with all their cameras and last time my code was used. The unit number was **** under my dads name ( *********************) however I am authorized on the account and it was my credit card on file for the payments. I would like my money back and a proper resolution to my complaint. This company is insanely unprofessional.Business Response
Date: 08/24/2023
Dear **************,
Thank you for reaching out to us. Our District Manager has contacted you and we agreed to refund the prorated rent of $17.42. The refund has been initiated.Please feel free to reach out to ************ if you have any further questions. Have a great day!
Customer Answer
Date: 08/24/2023
Better Business Bureau:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me. I will wait for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved.
Regards,
*********************
Initial Complaint
Date:07/31/2023
Type:Status:AnsweredMore info
Complaint statuses
- Resolved:
- The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
- Unresolved:
- The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
- Answered:
- The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
- Unanswered:
- The business failed to respond to the dispute.
- Unpursuable:
- BBB is unable to locate the business.
Their motorized roll door doesn't have any safety features required by law. I used it and it broke my personal belongings and instead of an apology they sent me a bill for 800 dollars. It is very unsafe, and if it was a child and not my belongings, they would have been severely injured if not killed.Business Response
Date: 08/03/2023
*****************,
Thank you for contacting us. Our Regional Manager discussed this issue with you, and explained why you were being billed for the repairs. After an investigation, it is clear that the door was damaged due to you manually closing the door on your items. For this reason, SmartStop Self Storage feels that it is fair that you pay for the repair of the door.
Customer Answer
Date: 08/04/2023
I understand that I did close the door on something. My issue is the doors are not in compliance with UL 325.
The **** Federal Law UL 325 requires all garage doors to include safety mechanisms, such as garage door sensors. Even though there are other safety tools, sensors are the most common. Your garage must have an approved safety device, like sensors, on your garage door.Jul 30, 2020
Are you arguing that your door is in compliance with UL 325? You can see in the video it is not.
Had there been such mandatory safety devices installed, this incident would not have happened. If you can show me some documentation that safety regulations don't apply to your door, I'll happily pay. -*********************;
Business Response
Date: 08/09/2023
Dear ******************,
After speaking with our Senior District Manager, we are aware of your agreement to cover the costs associated with repairing the door. We appreciate your cooperation in resolving the matter.
Initial Complaint
Date:06/27/2023
Type:Status:AnsweredMore info
Complaint statuses
- Resolved:
- The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
- Unresolved:
- The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
- Answered:
- The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
- Unanswered:
- The business failed to respond to the dispute.
- Unpursuable:
- BBB is unable to locate the business.
I rented a storage unit via Smart Stop self storage years ago. I have paid on the unit for a decade. I have paid around ********* in rent only to have my items get auctioned off after not getting noticed properly and the facility refusing to accept the payments from me. I am very upset about this. There were other issues with the rental as well.Business Response
Date: 06/27/2023
We are unable to find an account for **************** in our system and need additional details so we can research the issue. In order to protect her privacy, we request that she send us a direct message on ******** (*************************************************) or Instagram (@smartstopselfstorage) and provide the name the account is under, the location of the SmartStop facility, and an approximate date of the auction. We will also need an email address and/or phone number so our customer service team can reach out.Initial Complaint
Date:04/16/2023
Type:Status:ResolvedMore info
Complaint statuses
- Resolved:
- The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
- Unresolved:
- The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
- Answered:
- The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
- Unanswered:
- The business failed to respond to the dispute.
- Unpursuable:
- BBB is unable to locate the business.
I currently rent a storage unit at their facility in ********, **. I've never been late with my payment and I was for the month of April. Although I didn't know my payment was late until I received a late notice dated 4/7/23 but I didn't get it until 4/14/23. I think they should call everyone that has a failed payment instead of sending a late notice because by that time there isn't any time to resolve the issue. Their way adds a late fee that you can't take off. You're also not able to enter your unit until it's paid in full. Had I been notified that my auto pay didn't work, I would have been able to take care of it before the late fee was accessed. I was also told that when they raise the rent (which was 2 months ago) they would also improve the times the units could be accessed. They didn't. They have horrible entry times and I can never make it there due to those times. But, they didn't come through on their promise to make the entry times better which is one reason I:'m so upset about how they handle noitifying tenants of non payment. All they had to do was call me and I would have taken care of it. M debit card was compromised so I had to get another one and I can never get into my account at this facility and I can never get there while theyre open so I didn't know my card didn't work.I just think they need to work on their business practices. Plus my handle/lock on my unit was tampered with and I can't get into it easily and theyve known about it for months. Nothing is fixed yet.Business Response
Date: 04/24/2023
Hello,
Regarding the subject complaint, we reached out to the customer directly on April ************************************************************************************* an amicable fashion. We consider this case closed.
Thank you,
******
SmartStop.com
*****************************
VICE PRESIDENT OF MARKETINGCustomer Answer
Date: 04/25/2023
Better Business Bureau:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me. I will wait for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved.
Regards,
*********************
Initial Complaint
Date:11/04/2022
Type:Status:AnsweredMore info
Complaint statuses
- Resolved:
- The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
- Unresolved:
- The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
- Answered:
- The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
- Unanswered:
- The business failed to respond to the dispute.
- Unpursuable:
- BBB is unable to locate the business.
Smart stop in garden grove has too short of a grace ****** regarding late payments. They are now bypassing a late fee and charging me a $125 foreclosure fee and already have my unit prepared to auction off and it's only been 3 days late past the 1st of the month . I was late last month and have been paying partial payments when they quoted me the wrong due date making me think I had more time to pay then I actually did. I am homeless but working part time and trying my best to protect and keep my storage consisting of the only family memories I have along with personal items. I've been renting this unit for 3 years now and would just die if I lost it. I'm trying my best but they seem money hungry attempting to auction off units quickly out from under us. I am very distraught over this and have never seen a storage facility move toward auctioning off units as fast as this one does. Unbelievable.Business Response
Date: 03/22/2023
Customer paid and stopped auction.
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