Joe DownsCEO & Co-Founder, Belrose Storage Group. Founder, Storage Moguls.

Ignore Lien Law and You’ll Get Sued for Theft

3 Mar 2026 · 1 min

Watch on YouTube

0:42

Facility owners and landlords who ignore lien statutes face conversion lawsuits they'll almost certainly lose. Your lease must match your state's specific requirements, and you need an insurance clause that explicitly removes your responsibility for tenant property.

Chapters

If you don't follow the statute to the letter of the law, you can be sued for conversion, which is essentially theft. It's like you stole their stuff, and that is a lawsuit you will lose. So make sure your lease is state-specific and legally sound. If you're in Pennsylvania, it needs to be a Pennsylvania lease. If you're in Ohio, it needs to be Ohio lease. All right, now let's talk about how to shift the liability away from your facility. Because after the lien law, the insurance requirement is the next non-negotiable clause in your lease. You're— you can't be responsible for your tenant's stuff, and this is the clause that proves it.