I've actually found out both ways. I've requested a box that the vendor
couldn't find, and upon closing one of their facilities, they sent a
list of boxes that were in the database but not on the shelf. Their
letter indicated that they had done a thorough search (they delineated
exactly the steps they had taken) and those boxes would be removed from
the database.

It is interesting to note that in the latter case, we insisted that the
boxes must be there somewhere because we had not checked them out, and
after a day or so they "found" the boxes. I thought it odd that after
such an "exhaustive" search (per their letter), they were able to find
the boxes in just a day once notified that they were not in our
possession.

In the other instance, where I had requested a box, the carton was never
found. Since this was for a litigation request, I asked the vendor to
provide us with a letter indicating that we had not checked out the box
but that they had lost it themselves. The letter I got never actually
said that they lost the box, just that they couldn't find it. I thought
it didn't really state what I wanted it to, but our attorneys accepted
the letter as good enough to cover our @$$&$. Now that I'm thinking
about it, I need to check to make sure the box was permed out at N/C to
stop the monthly storage charges.

The bottom line is that I don't trust that the vendor absolutely keeps
track of our boxes, so I insist that our users keep a detailed tracking
log of everything that comes and goes.


Nolene Sherman | Director of Records Management | Standard Pacific Homes
| 949-727-9360 | FAX 949-789-3379 | [log in to unmask]

-----Original Message-----
From: Records Management Program [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On
Behalf Of Larry Medina
Sent: Monday, April 14, 2008 11:04 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [RM] Real Document Losses

How about a few follow-up qualifying questions for this virtual survey:

How do you generally become aware of lost boxes?
Does your provider tell you, or do you only find out when you request
them?
Do they run regular inventory reports to ensure if they bill you for
storing 10,000 boxes they ACTUALLY HAVE those 10,000 boxes?
Do you make periodic inspections for random boxes to make sure they're
there?
If they/you determine a box is lost, what credit do you receive?
Does it ever measure up to the damage you may suffer as a result of the
box being lost?
If you send 100 boxes, and they report receiving 100 boxes, and you have
records of everything you've requested and returned during the contract,
WHERE IS THE LOST BOX?
What is the potential exposure if the information was sent to a
competitor or other business?

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