102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2021 and 2022
HB4627

 

Introduced 1/21/2022, by Rep. Michael Halpin

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
770 ILCS 95/4  from Ch. 114, par. 804

    Amends the Self-Service Storage Facility Act. Requires a notice of an owner's lien for a claim which has become due on a self-service storage facility to be published once (rather than once a week for 2 consecutive weeks) in a newspaper of general circulation where the self-service storage facility is located or in any other commercially reasonable manner. Provides that the manner of advertisement shall be deemed commercially reasonable if at least 3 bidders who are unrelated to the owner attend or view the sale at the time and place advertised. Provides that after the expiration of the time given in the notice, the occupant shall be notified of the sale or other disposition, which shall be delivered either in person or by verified mail or by electronic mail to the last known address of the occupant.


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A BILL FOR

 

HB4627LRB102 24546 LNS 33780 b

1    AN ACT concerning civil law.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Self-Service Storage Facility Act is
5amended by changing Section 4 as follows:
 
6    (770 ILCS 95/4)  (from Ch. 114, par. 804)
7    Sec. 4. Enforcement of lien. An owner's lien as provided
8for in Section 3 of this Act for a claim which has become due
9may be satisfied as follows:
10    (A) The occupant shall be notified.
11    (B) The notice shall be delivered:
12        (1) in person; or
13        (2) by verified mail or by electronic mail to the last
14    known address of the occupant.
15    (C) The notice shall include:
16        (1) An itemized statement of the owner's claim showing
17    the sum due at the time of the notice and the date when the
18    sum became due;
19        (2) The name of the facility, address, telephone
20    number, date, time, location, and manner of the lien sale,
21    and the occupant's name and unit number;
22        (3) A notice of denial of access to the personal
23    property, if such denial is permitted under the terms of

 

 

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1    the rental agreement, which provides the name, street
2    address, and telephone number of the owner, or his
3    designated agent, whom the occupant may contact to respond
4    to this notice;
5        (3.5) Except as otherwise provided by a rental
6    agreement and until a lien sale, the exclusive care,
7    custody, and control of all personal property stored in
8    the leased self-service storage space remains vested in
9    the occupant. No bailment or higher level of liability is
10    created if the owner over-locks the occupant's lock,
11    thereby denying the occupant access to the storage space.
12    Rent and other charges related to the lien continue to
13    accrue during the period of time when access is denied
14    because of non-payment;
15        (4) A demand for payment within a specified time not
16    less than 14 days after delivery of the notice;
17        (5) A conspicuous statement that unless the claim is
18    paid within the time stated in the notice, the personal
19    property will be advertised for sale or other disposition,
20    and will be sold or otherwise disposed of at a specified
21    time and place.
22    (D) Any notice made pursuant to this Section shall be
23presumed delivered when it is deposited with the United States
24Postal Service, and properly addressed with postage prepaid or
25sent by electronic mail and the owner receives a receipt of
26delivery to the occupant's last known address, except if the

 

 

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1owner does not receive a receipt of delivery for the notice
2sent by electronic mail, the notice is presumed delivered when
3it is sent to the occupant by verified mail to the occupant's
4last known mailing address.
5    (E) After the expiration of the time given in the notice,
6an advertisement of the sale or other disposition shall be
7published once a week for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper
8of general circulation where the self-service storage facility
9is located or in any other commercially reasonable manner. The
10manner of advertisement shall be deemed commercially
11reasonable if at least 3 bidders who are unrelated to the owner
12attend or view the sale at the time and place advertised. The
13advertisement shall include:
14        (1) The name of the facility, address, telephone
15    number, date, time, location, and manner of lien sale and
16    the occupant's name and unit number.
17        (2) (Blank).
18        (3) The sale or other disposition shall take place not
19    sooner than 15 days after the first publication. If there
20    is no newspaper of general circulation where the
21    self-service storage facility is located, the
22    advertisement shall be posted at least 10 days before the
23    date of the sale or other disposition in not less than 6
24    conspicuous places in the neighborhood where the
25    self-service storage facility is located.
26    (E-5) After the expiration of the time given in the

 

 

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1notice, the occupant shall be notified of the sale or other
2disposition, which shall be delivered either (i) in person, or
3(ii) by verified mail or by electronic mail to the last known
4address of the occupant. The notice shall contain the
5information included in the advertisement pursuant to
6subsection (E).
7    (F) Any sale or other disposition of the personal property
8shall conform to the terms of the notification as provided for
9in this Section.
10    (G) Any sale or other disposition of the personal property
11shall be held at the self-service storage facility, or at the
12nearest suitable place to where the personal property is held
13or stored. A sale under this Section shall be deemed to be held
14at the self-service storage facility where the personal
15property is stored if the sale is held on a publicly accessible
16online website.
17    (G-5) If the property upon which the lien is claimed is a
18motor vehicle or watercraft and rent or other charges related
19to the property remain unpaid or unsatisfied for 60 days, the
20owner may have the property towed from the self-service
21storage facility. If a motor vehicle or watercraft is towed,
22the owner shall not be liable for any damage to the motor
23vehicle or watercraft, once the tower takes possession of the
24property. After the motor vehicle or watercraft is towed, the
25owner may pursue other collection options against the
26delinquent occupant for any outstanding debt. If the owner

 

 

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1chooses to sell a motor vehicle, aircraft, mobile home, moped,
2motorcycle, snowmobile, trailer, or watercraft, the owner
3shall contact the Secretary of State and any other
4governmental agency as reasonably necessary to determine the
5name and address of the title holder or lienholder of the item,
6and the owner shall notify every identified title holder or
7lienholder of the time and place of the proposed sale. The
8owner is required to notify the holder of a security interest
9only if the security interest is filed under the name of the
10person signing the rental agreement or an occupant. An owner
11who fails to make the lien searches required by this Section is
12liable only to valid lienholders injured by that failure as
13provided in Section 3.
14    (H) Before any sale or other disposition of personal
15property pursuant to this Section, the occupant may pay the
16amount necessary to satisfy the lien, and the reasonable
17expenses incurred under this Section, and thereby redeem the
18personal property. Upon receipt of such payment, the owner
19shall return the personal property, and thereafter the owner
20shall have no liability to any person with respect to such
21personal property.
22    (I) A purchaser in good faith of the personal property
23sold to satisfy a lien, as provided for in Section 3 of this
24Act, takes the property free of any rights of persons against
25whom the lien was valid, despite noncompliance by the owner
26with the requirements of this Section.

 

 

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1    (J) In the event of a sale under this Section, the owner
2may satisfy his lien from the proceeds of the sale, but shall
3hold the balance, if any, for delivery on demand to the
4occupant. If the occupant does not claim the balance of the
5proceeds within one year of the date of sale, it shall become
6the property of the owner without further recourse by the
7occupant.
8    (K) The lien on any personal property created by this Act
9shall be terminated as to any such personal property which is
10sold or otherwise disposed of pursuant to this Act and any such
11personal property which is removed from the self-service
12storage facility.
13    (L) If 3 or more bidders who are unrelated to the owner are
14in attendance at a sale held under this Section, the sale and
15its proceeds are deemed to be commercially reasonable.
16(Source: P.A. 102-687, eff. 12-17-21.)