Colorado man loses late wife’s ashes and family treasures after reno company fails to pay storage bill

Jeff Hersh of Broomfield, Colorado, says he’s lost nearly everything that mattered to him — from his late wife’s ashes to decades of family memories — after the contents of his storage unit were auctioned off. It’s a devastating loss, but not as rare as you might think. Each year, about 155,000 storage units are auctioned across the U.S., according to Simply Self Storage (1). That adds up to a $65 million industry built on unclaimed belongings and missed payments. Must Read For Hersh, it all started las ...