Please Help My Son Recover After U-Haul Fraud

When my gentle, kind and caring son went back to college and discovered the U-Haul storage facility had lost ALL of his belongings, he was devastated and I was too!!! I still am!!!! Numerous sacrifices were made to get him what he needed last year. This year, so much is piling up on me… I just don’t see how I can do it all by myself. I need help. Please help me help my baby. School has started and I asked him to make an Rocks Amazon Wish List after U-Haul Fraud account. I keep thinking about how cold it gets in Illinois. He has no winter coats anymore. No jackets. His sweaters are gone. His long johns, gloves, socks, underwear…. He is a musical theater major. His music is gone. His computer, books, keyboard, guitar… gone. Everything is gone.

My name is Tangie Ambrose. I am a single mom and the mother of two wonderful children. My daughter, Stone, is a 16 year old junior in high school. My son, Rock, is a 19 year old sophomore at Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois, majoring in musical theater. We live in Los Angeles, California.

This fundraiser is for my son, Rock. On May 16th, before Rock left Illinois to come back to California after his first year at Millikin, he started putting his belongings in a U-Haul storage facility. He finished on May 17th and then with one suitcase in tow, he flew back home to California. Everything else was left in storage. We were blessed to have him home with us for a couple of months. He did many odd jobs and worked at Journeys in the mall in order to pay his own utility bill during the school year, some of his college fees, and be independent. While saving, he still made sure his storage bill was paid on time each month, and he has the receipts to prove it.

Sunday, August 18, Rock left LA and flew back to Illinois.

Saturday, August 24th, Rock went to the U-Haul Storage Facility to retrieve his belongings. There was another lock where his had been and the employees had no idea where his belongings were!!!! They still say they don’t know!!! Everything my baby boy owned is gone! They told Rock they couldn’t open the unit to see if his things were inside because that wasn't his storage unit. Rock and his friends were insistent that this was indeed the same storage unit the young lady who initially helped him in May, sent them to.

We discovered the problem.

Rock paid for unit #2024. Because the U-Haul facility is complex, they give each person a map and highlight the path they should take to get to their storage unit. The young lady helping Rock highlighted a path to unit #2042. So that’s where they went. Rock and his friends put all his belongings in unit #2042 and then Rock flew home to California. U-Haul called while he was home asking if he still wanted his unit. He responded , “Yes. I do!” He kept paying his storage fee and went on about his business.

When he went to the U-Haul Storage Facility to get his belongings on Saturday, August 24, the people working there told Rock they didn’t know where his things were but they would have more information for him on Tuesday, August 27. Tuesday came and went. Nothing. I called U-Haul and started a formal case on Friday, August 30. A U-Haul employee assured me that all cases are resolved in three days and he would know something by Tuesday. (She said that the general manager was reviewing the tapes.) Since Monday was Labor Day, she asked me to give them until Wednesday, Sept 4. I did. Still nothing.

On Friday, Sept 6, Rock called Uhaul again. This time they said he would hear something Saturday, Sept 7. Still nothing. And they asked him if he had found the map they gave him. Thankfully, his answer was YES! (I forgot to mention initially he couldn’t find it so it was his word against theirs…. And lastly, my baby boy was on autograft so he paid his bill ontime each month!!!!!)

Now, while all this is going on, my son is without everything... School has started. He is in Illinois. I am way across the world in California. U-Haul is giving us the runaround, and he needs help now!!! He already spent the money he made over the summer trying to get himself resituated.. He had to purchase things he should have had. His receipt on the U-Haul bill says there is $1000 insurance. Even if they give that, it is barely enough to cover the cost of the computer.

My prayer is that we get enough money to repurchase what U-Haul lost. He had many things in his storage that simply can’t be replaced. But I will do my best. If there is extra money, I will use that money to pay for his college supplies, fees and for him to get food. Rock is actively applying for work study jobs. It's hard to study, create, perform… when you are stressed about your living environment.

I appreciate anything you are able to do. Rock is an awesome, upstanding young man who deserves the best. There is no amount too small. If you can't make a donation, please send us love and/or keep us in your prayers. I am also including Rocks Amazon Wish List in case anyone would like to purchase and have the item sent directly to Rock. He said, “Mommy so many of my clothes are gone, I haven’t even started thinking about that.” If you know someone who works at U-Haul, that could be helpful too.

If I could handle this alone, I would. But I can't. I need help. Thank you so much for everything. Many blessings to you.

Tangie Ambrose

(Rocks mom)