What can we do with the items that we were storing for a friend who can not pick them up?
Full Question:
My fiancee's friend asked if we could hold some of her belongings while she temporarily moved to another state. We were expecting to hold the items for a couple of months, but now she says that she is not coming back. She will not pay for us to ship them to her and she will not pay for a storage center to hold her items. Is she right to expect us to hold her things indefinitely, and if not, what can we do with the items that are cluttering our house?
01/20/2009 |
Category: Abandoned Property |
State: Alabama |
#15028
Answer:
When a person who is not a landlord agrees to hold property for another, a bailment is created. When the person holding the property, called the bailee, is not being compensated, it is called a gratutous bailment and the bailee must use reasonable care to protect the property.
If the property is abandoned, local abandoned property laws and ordinances apply, which vary by local area. Such laws typically require a notice to be sent to the last known address of the owner, specifying a time limit for retrieving the property before it wil be sold. I suggest calling the local police department for applicable local abandoned property laws.