Frequently Asked Questions

My unit is being auctioned, what should I do?

Having your items sold at auction by a storage facility is a final resolution for an overdue account. If you have goods in the unit that you care about, you need to get your storage bill paid and take back possession of your goods. Once a unit is sold, there is no way to get those items back.

My storage unit was auctioned. Can I get the buyer's information, so I can ask for some of my items back?

No. Lockerfox takes privacy seriously and does not give out any personal information of our bidders.

My storage unit was auctioned. Will you pass my contact information to the buyer in hopes of having items returned?

Lockerfox will not pass your information along to an auction winner.

How much does Lockerfox cost?

Lockerfox is a service that provides online bidding for storage auctions. Our fee to use the service is 10% of the winning bid subject to a $10.00 minimum charge. For example, if you win an auction for $250, we'll charge your credit card $25 and you'll need to take $250 (plus any tax or cleaning deposit) to the facility and pay those funds in cash.

Why was I charged sales tax on my unit?

Each facility determines on their own whether or not to charge sales tax on sold units. Lockerfox is not involved in that decision. If you have questions about sales tax, you would need to speak with the facility.

Why do some units show a closed blue door?

Those are auctions that aren't open for bidding yet. In many cases we don't show the photos or allow bidding until the first public notice appears in a local paper.

Do you have auctions in my area?

The easiest way to browse auctions close to you is by putting a zip code into the current auctions page or find storage auctions by state.

Do you charge my card for the cost of the locker?

No, the winning bid amount, plus any sales tax (and cleaning deposit if applicable) must be paid directly to the storage facility when you pick up your unit. The only thing charged to your card is the buyer's premium.

Once the auction closes, is the unit mine?

No, you must go to the storage facility and conduct the actual purchase. Please remember some facilities allow the overdue tenant to pay their bill after the auction closes, so time is of the essence in picking up your unit. Always call the storage facility and verify the unit is still available before driving long distances.

Why was a car or boat cancelled?

Before selling cars and boats, some states require the storage facility to run a lien search to determine if a bank holds a loan on the vehicle. If so, it must notify the financial institution before selling the asset. It's common for the facility to schedule the unit's auction while they are waiting for the paperwork to come back. If the lien search doesn't come back in time, the facility will cancel the auction. Often times these will be back up for auction at a later time, once the lien search comes back. Not all states require a lien search.

If the tenant pays their bill, what happens?

In the case where a tenant pays their bill after the auction closes, but before the winner arrives to purchase the unit, the storage facility will void the win. Any buyer's premium you were charged will automatically be refunded back to your card. You'll get an email if this happens, which will confirm that your premium was refunded.

How does bidding work?

Each auction has a minimum bid, which is the opening bid amount. All bidding takes place in $10 increments, so you'll normally bump the bid by $10 to become the leading bidder. It's possible going up by $10 won't make you the leader if another bidder has already placed a proxy bid for that amount or higher. Auctions are "soft close" - bids received in the last minute will bump the countdown back to 1 minute.

I placed a bid but it shows somebody else's screenname

This is due to that other bidder having a proxy bid (max bid) of higher than your attempted bid. Your bid attempt "pushed up" their proxy bid. You'll have to bid higher than their max bid to take the lead.

How do I place a proxy bid (also called a max bid)?

Simply place a bid that's more than the next-higher $10 increment. Lockerfox will place a bid for $10 higher than the current bid, making you the leader, and then place bids on your behalf, in $10 increments, to keep you on top - up to your maximum bid. You'll see your proxy bid amounts when viewing auctions you're leading on, and in the Active Bids section of the My Account page.

What's the Leaderboard Limit?

Bidders can be leading on a limited number of units at a time. You may request an increase in this limit. Granting increases is at the sole discretion of Lockerfox and may require you have an established track record of winning and picking up units.

Why do I have to leave a cleaning deposit?

As the auction winner, you are required to completely empty the unit and leave it ready to be re-rented. The cleaning deposit is a way for the storage facility to make sure you don't take what you want and leave the rest. You'll get the deposit back when you return to the office after emptying the unit. Sacrificing your cleaning deposit and leaving goods behind will generally lead to the facility requesting that we suspend your bidding privileges at their facilities.

What happens if I win a unit and decide I don't want it?

All bids placed on Lockerfox are real. You are making an agreement to purchase and remove the contents of the unit if you win. Bidders who are unable to meet their obligation are at risk of having their bidding priviledges suspended. Bidders who fail to pick up their won locker will forfeit their buyer's premium as an abandonment fee.

I won a unit, and the receipt said my card was declined.

No problem, just visit the Account Settings page and update your credit card. Then go to the Payments page and click Pay Now.

I won a bunch of units, where is the list?

Visit the Recent Wins section of the My Account page.

I still have a question. Who do I ask?

Visit the Contact Us page to ask our support team.