Michigan Self-Service Storage Facility Act

Chapter 570. Liens (Refs & Annos)
Self-Service Storage Facility Act (Refs & Annos)
570.521. Short title
570.522. Definitions
570.524. Denial of access to personal property in self-service storage facility or self-contained storage unit upon failure to pay rent; disclosure of occupant by tenant; notice of transfer or deployment overseas on active duty by service-member tenant
570.526. Civil action by tenant for damages and attorney's fees; effect of act upon other liens; owner's rights as to tenant's personal property
570.527. Application of act to property for which warehouse receipt, bill of lading, or other document of title issued

570.521. Short title

Sec. 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the “self-service storage facility act”.

570.522. Definitions

Sec. 2. As used in this act:

(a) “Active duty” means active duty pursuant to an executive order of the president of the United States, an act of congress, or an order of the governor.
(b) “Armed forces” means that term as defined in section 2 of the veteran right to employment services act, 1994 PA 39, MCL 35.1092.
(c) “Last known address” means the street address, post office box, or electronic mail address provided by the tenant in the latest rental agreement or in a subsequent written notice of change of address by hand delivery, first-class mail, or electronic mail.
(d) “Michigan national guard” means that term as defined in section 105 of the Michigan military act, 1967 PA 150, MCL 32.505. 
(e) “Owner” means the owner, operator, lessor, or sublessor of a self-service storage facility or self-contained storage unit or his or her agent or any other person authorized by him or her to manage the facility or to receive rent from a tenant under a rental agreement.
(f) “Rental agreement” means an agreement or lease that establishes or modifies terms, conditions, rules, or any other provision concerning the use and occupancy of a self-service storage facility or use of a self-contained storage unit.
(g) “Self-contained storage unit” means a unit not less than 500 cubic feet in size, including, but not limited to, a trailer, box, or other shipping container, that is leased by a tenant primarily for use as storage space whether the unit is located at a facility owned or operated by the owner or at another location designated by the tenant.
(h) “Self-service storage facility” or “facility” means any real property designed or used for the purpose of renting or leasing individual storage space to tenants who are to have access to that space for the purpose of storing and removing personal property.
(i) “Service member” means a member of the armed forces, a reserve branch of the armed forces, or the Michigan national guard. 
(j) “Tenant” means a person or the person's sublessee, successor, or assign entitled to the use of storage space to the exclusion of others at a self-service storage facility or in a self-contained storage unit under a rental agreement.

570.524. Denial of access to personal property in self-service storage facility or self-contained storage unit upon failure to pay rent; disclosure of occupant by tenant; notice of transfer or deployment overseas on active duty by service-member tenant
Sec. 4. (1) Upon the failure of a tenant to pay the rent for the storage space or unit when it becomes due, the owner may, without notice, not less than 5 days after the date the rent is due, deny the tenant access to the personal property located in the self-service storage facility or self-contained storage unit.
(2) The tenant who signs a rental agreement for storage space at a self-service storage facility shall disclose in writing the identity, including name, address, and telephone number, of the occupant if the occupant is other than the tenant who signs the agreement.
(3) A tenant who is a service member and who is transferred or deployed overseas on active duty for a period of 180 days or more may notify the owner of the transfer or deployment. The tenant shall provide written evidence of the transfer or deployment with the notice.

570.526. Civil action by tenant for damages and attorney's fees; effect of act upon other liens; owner's rights as to tenant's personal property
Sec. 6. (1) A tenant who suffers damages because of an owner's failure to comply with this act may bring an action in a court of appropriate jurisdiction for the actual amount of the damages or $250.00, whichever is greater, together with reasonable attorney fees.
(2) This act shall not be construed in any manner that impairs or affects the rights of parties to create liens by special contract or agreement, or that affects any other lien arising at common law, in equity, or by any statute of this state or any other lien not provided for under this act.
(3) Except for actions that an owner is permitted to take under this act or under a rental agreement concerning personal property stored in a self-service storage facility or self-contained storage unit, an owner does not have care, custody, or control of a tenant's personal property.

570.527. Application of act to property for which warehouse receipt, bill of lading, or other document of title issued
Sec. 7. This act does not apply to personal property for which the owner issues a warehouse receipt, bill of lading, or other document of title.

Mich. Comp. Laws Ann. §§ 570.521 - 570.527 (proposed legislations omitted)