Public Storage Insurance Class Action Settlement Gets Final OK

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Yesterday, a Florida federal judge gave final approval to a $5 million class action settlement over allegations Public Storage overcharged Florida customers for self-storage insurance.

U.S. District Judge Ursula Ungaro disagreed with objections that the Public Storage class action settlement was too small and determined that the deal was fair and reasonable.

Judge Ungaro also agreed to increase the amount the plaintiffs’ attorneys would receive from the Public Storage class action settlement, finding that they had done an excellent job advocating for the Class.

Class Counsel had urged the judge to approve their requested fees, which they say “constitute less than 60% of the compensable market value fees, meaning Class Counsel are discounting their normal hourly rates by over one-third. Moreover, the requested fee award does not take into account any of the significant work going forward, for which there will be no additional compensation.”

The judge agreed with the Class Counsel’s argument that their request for $1.75 million is reasonable given the risk of bringing the action on a contingent fee basis, the time and labor they devoted to the class action lawsuit, the reputation and experience of the attorneys, and the benefits the settlement provides to Class Members.

The Public Storage settlement resolves a class action lawsuit alleging Public Storage deceived some of its tenants by misrepresenting that it would send the premiums collected through the sale of self-storage insurance to an independent insurance company when it actually kept more than 75 percent of the premiums paid by Florida residents. The Public Storage class action settlement was reached on Sept. 5, 2015, just days before the case was set to go to trial.

Public Storage denies any wrongdoing but agreed to settle the class action lawsuit to avoid the expense and uncertainty associated with trial. The Public Storage insurance class action settlement received preliminary approval on Oct. 21, 2015.

Class Members of the Public Storage settlement include anyone who rented storage units from Public Storage within the state of Florida and who purchased self-storage insurance policies from Public Storage at any time between May 1, 2010 and June 18, 2015.

Under the terms of the Public Storage class action settlement, Class Members were eligible to claim up to 50 percent of the total alleged damages. The deadline to file a claim passed on Jan. 11, 2016.

More information about when the awards would be distributed was not immediately available. Keep checking TopClassActions.com or sign up for our free newsletter for the latest updates. You can also mark this article as a “Favorite” using your free Top Class Actions account to receive notifications when this article is updated.

The plaintiffs are represented by Scott B. Cosgrove, Alec H. Schultz and Constantine P. Economides of Leon Cosgrove LLC and David M. Buckner, Seth E. Miles and Brett E. Von Borke of Buckner & Miles.

The Public Storage Self-Storage Insurance Class Action Lawsuit is Morgan v. Public Storage, Case No. 1:14-cv-21559, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

UPDATE: There was a single objector to the settlement so until that’s resolved, the Claims Administrator cannot pay out claims.