H.B. 237 Enrolled

1

ENFORCEMENT OF LIENS
2 2011 GENERAL SESSION
3 STATE OF UTAH
4 Chief Sponsor: Julie Fisher
5 Senate Sponsor: J. Stuart Adams
6
7 LONG TITLE
8 General Description:
9 This bill modifies a provision relating to the enforcement of storage facility liens.
10 Highlighted Provisions:
11 This bill:
12 . requires a notice of a lien enforcement action involving the sale of a vehicle, vessel,
13 outboard motor, or aircraft to be sent to the last known address of the registered
14 owner and lienholder, as disclosed by the records of the Motor Vehicle Division.
15 Money Appropriated in this Bill:
16 None
17 Other Special Clauses:
18 None
19 Utah Code Sections Affected:
20 AMENDS:
21 38-8-3, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2009, First Special Session, Chapter 5
22
23 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
24 Section 1. Section 38-8-3 is amended to read:
25 38-8-3. Enforcement of lien -- Notice requirements -- Sale procedure and effect.
26 A claim of an owner which has become due against an occupant and which is secured
27 by the owner's lien may be satisfied as follows:
28 (1) No enforcement action may be taken by the owner until the occupant has been in
29 default continuously for a period of 30 days.

30 (2) After the occupant has been in default continuously for a period of 30 days, the
31 owner may begin enforcement action if the occupant has been given notice in writing. The
32 notice shall be delivered in person or sent by certified mail to the last known address of the
33 occupant[, and a]. If the property to be sold in an enforcement action includes a vehicle,
34 vessel, or outboard motor, as those terms are defined in Section 41-1a-102 , or an aircraft as
35 defined in Section 72-10-102 , the notice shall also be delivered to the last known address of the
36 registered owner and any lienholder, as disclosed by the records of the Motor Vehicle Division.
37 A copy of the notice shall, at the same time, be sent to the sheriff of the county where the
38 self-service storage facility is located. Any lienholder with an interest in the property to be sold
39 or otherwise disposed of, of whom the owner has knowledge either through the disclosure
40 provision on the rental agreement or through the existence of a validly filed and perfected
41 UCC-1 financing statement with the Division of Corporations and Commercial Code, or
42 through other written notification, shall be included in the notice process as set forth in this
43 section.
44 (3) This notice shall include:
45 (a) an itemized statement of the owner's claim showing the sum due at the time of the
46 notice and the date when the sum became due;
47 (b) a brief and general description of the personal property subject to the lien, which
48 description shall be reasonably adequate to permit the person notified to identify the property;
49 except that any container including, but not limited to, a trunk, valise, or box that is locked,
50 fastened, sealed, or tied in a manner which deters immediate access to its contents may be
51 described as such without describing its contents;
52 (c) a notification of denial of access to the personal property, if such denial is permitted
53 under the terms of the rental agreement, which notification shall provide the name, street
54 address, and telephone number of the owner or his designated agent whom the occupant may
55 contact to respond to the notification;
56 (d) a demand for payment within a specified time not less than 15 days after delivery of
57 the notice; and

58 (e) a conspicuous statement that, unless the claim is paid within the time stated in the
59 notice, the personal property will be advertised for sale or other disposition and will be sold or
60 otherwise disposed of at a specified time and place.
61 (4) Any notice made under this section shall be presumed delivered when it is
62 deposited with the United States postal service and properly addressed with postage prepaid.
63 (5) (a) After the expiration of the time given in the notice, an advertisement of the sale
64 or other disposition shall be published:
65 (i) (A) if there is a newspaper of general circulation in the county where the
66 self-service storage facility is located, once a week for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper
67 of general circulation in that county; or
68 (B) if there is not a newspaper of general circulation in the county where the
69 self-service storage facility is located, by posting the advertisement of sale or other disposition
70 in not less than six conspicuous places in the neighborhood where the self-service storage
71 facility is located; and
72 (ii) in accordance with Section 45-1-101 for two weeks.
73 (b) The advertisement described in Subsection (5)(a) shall include:
74 (i) a brief and general description of the personal property reasonably adequate to
75 permit its identification as provided for in Subsection (3)(b); the address of the self-service
76 storage facility and the number, if any, of the space where the personal property is located; and
77 the name of the occupant and his last known address; and
78 (ii) the time, place, and manner of the sale or other disposition, which sale or other
79 disposition shall take place not sooner than 15 days after the first publication.
80 (6) Any sale or other disposition of the personal property shall conform to the terms of
81 the notice provided for in this section.
82 (7) Any sale or other disposition of the personal property shall be held at the
83 self-service storage facility or at the nearest suitable place to where the personal property is
84 held or stored.
85 (8) Before any sale or other disposition of personal property under this section, the

86 occupant may pay the amount necessary to satisfy the lien and the reasonable expenses incurred
87 under this section and thereby redeem the personal property; upon receipt of this payment, the
88 owner shall return the personal property, and thereafter the owner shall have no liability to any
89 person with respect to that personal property.
90 (9) A purchaser in good faith of the personal property sold to satisfy a lien as provided
91 for in this chapter takes the property free of any rights of persons against whom the lien was
92 valid and free of any rights of a secured creditor, despite noncompliance by the owner with the
93 requirements of this section.
94 (10) In the event of a sale under this section, the owner may satisfy his lien for the
95 proceeds of the sale, subject to the rights of any prior lienholder; the lien rights of the prior
96 lienholder are automatically transferred to the proceeds of the sale; if the sale is made in good
97 faith and is conducted in a reasonable manner, the owner shall not be subject to any surcharge
98 for a deficiency in the amount of a prior secured lien, but shall hold the balance, if any, for
99 delivery to the occupant, lienholder, or other person in interest; if the occupant, lienholder, or
100 other person in interest does not claim the balance of the proceeds within one year of the date
101 of sale, it shall become the property of the Utah state treasurer as unclaimed property with no
102 further claim against the owner.
103 (11) If the requirements of this chapter are not satisfied, if the sale of the personal
104 property is not in conformity with the notice of sale, or if there is a willful violation of this
105 chapter, nothing in this section affects the rights and liabilities of the owner, occupant, or any
106 other person.