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Commitments and Contingencies
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2018
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Commitments and Contingencies
a.    Leases

Most of our leased facilities are leased under various operating leases that typically have initial lease terms of five to ten years. A majority of these leases have renewal options with one or more five-year options to extend and may have fixed or Consumer Price Index escalation clauses. We also lease vehicles and certain office equipment which have remaining lease lives ranging from one to seven years. Total rent expense under all of our operating leases was $321,337, $350,403 and $365,762 for the years ended December 31, 2016, 2017 and 2018, respectively.

Estimated minimum future lease payments (excluding common area maintenance charges) include payments for certain renewal periods at our option because failure to renew results in an economic disincentive due to significant capital expenditure costs (e.g., racking structures), thereby making it reasonably assured that we will renew the lease. Such payments in effect at December 31, are as follows:
Year
 
Operating Lease
Payments
 
Sublease
Income
 
Capital
Leases
2019
 
$
323,454

 
$
(7,525
)
 
$
80,513

2020
 
293,276

 
(7,200
)
 
71,335

2021
 
267,379

 
(7,063
)
 
61,269

2022
 
246,128

 
(6,694
)
 
52,832

2023
 
221,808

 
(6,409
)
 
44,722

Thereafter
 
1,287,807

 
(6,279
)
 
377,750

Total minimum lease payments
 
$
2,639,852

 
$
(41,170
)
 
688,421

Less amounts representing interest
 
 

 
 

 
(241,248
)
Present value of capital lease obligations
 
 

 
 

 
$
447,173



In addition, we have certain contractual obligations related to purchase commitments which require minimum payments as follows:
Year
 
Purchase
Commitments(1)
2019
 
$
232,880

2020
 
48,436

2021
 
40,112

2022
 
20,042

2023
 
2,196

Thereafter
 
1,876

 
 
$
345,542


______________________________________________________________________________
(1)
Purchase commitments include obligations for future construction costs associated with the expansion of our data center business which represent a substantial portion of the amount of purchase commitments due in 2019.

b. Self-Insured Liabilities

We are self-insured up to certain limits for costs associated with workers' compensation claims, vehicle accidents, property and general business liabilities, and benefits paid under employee healthcare and short-term disability programs. At December 31, 2017 and 2018 there were $38,460 and $41,328, respectively, of self-insurance accruals reflected in Accrued expenses on our Consolidated Balance Sheets. The measurement of these costs requires the consideration of historical cost experience and judgments about the present and expected levels of cost per claim. We account for these costs primarily through actuarial methods, which develop estimates of the undiscounted liability for claims incurred, including those claims incurred but not reported. These methods provide estimates of future ultimate claim costs based on claims incurred as of the balance sheet date.

c. Litigation—General

We are involved in litigation from time to time in the ordinary course of business. A portion of the defense and/or settlement costs associated with such litigation is covered by various commercial liability insurance policies purchased by us and, in limited cases, indemnification from third parties. Our policy is to establish reserves for loss contingencies when the losses are both probable and reasonably estimable. We record legal costs associated with loss contingencies as expenses in the period in which they are incurred. The matters described below represent our significant loss contingencies. We have evaluated each matter and, if both probable and estimable, accrued an amount that represents our estimate of any probable loss associated with such matter. In addition, we have estimated a reasonably possible range for all loss contingencies including those described below. We believe it is reasonably possible that we could incur aggregate losses in addition to amounts currently accrued for all matters up to an additional $16,800 over the next several years, of which certain amounts would be covered by insurance or indemnity arrangements.

d. Italy Fire

On November 4, 2011, we experienced a fire at a facility we leased in Aprilia, Italy. The facility primarily stored archival and inactive business records for local area businesses. Despite quick response by local fire authorities, damage to the building was extensive, and the building and its contents were a total loss. We have been sued by six customers. Four of those lawsuits have been settled and two remain pending, including a claim asserted by Azienda per i Transporti Autoferrotranviari del Comune di Roma, S.p.A, seeking 42,600 Euros for the loss of its current and historical archives. We have also received correspondence from other affected customers, including certain customers demanding payment under various theories of liability. Although our warehouse legal liability insurer has reserved its rights to contest coverage related to certain types of potential claims, we believe we carry adequate insurance. We deny any liability with respect to the fire and we have referred these claims to our warehouse legal liability insurer for an appropriate response. We do not expect that this event will have a material impact on our consolidated financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. We sold our Italian operations on April 27, 2012, and we indemnified the buyers related to certain obligations and contingencies associated with this fire. As a result of the sale of the Italian operations, any future statement of operations and cash flow impacts related to the fire will be reflected as discontinued operations.

e. Argentina Fire

On February 5, 2014, we experienced a fire at a facility we own in Buenos Aires, Argentina. As a result of the quick response by local fire authorities, the fire was contained before the entire facility was destroyed and all employees were safely evacuated; however, a number of first responders lost their lives, or in some cases, were severely injured. The cause of the fire is currently being investigated. We believe we carry adequate insurance and do not expect that this event will have a material impact to our consolidated financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. Revenues from our operations at this facility represent less than 0.5% of our consolidated revenues. In December 2018, we received insurance proceeds of approximately $13,700 related to the involuntary conversion of assets included in the facility and, as a result, we recorded a gain on disposal/write-down of property, plant and equipment (excluding real estate), net of $8,814 during the fourth quarter of 2018.


f. Brooklyn Fire (Recall)

On January 31, 2015, a former Recall leased facility located in Brooklyn, New York was completely destroyed by a fire. Approximately 900,000 cartons of customer records were lost impacting approximately 1,200 customers. No one was injured as a result of the fire. We believe we carry adequate insurance to cover any losses resulting from the fire. There is one pending customer-related lawsuit stemming from the fire, which is being defended by our warehouse legal liability insurer. We have also received correspondence from other customers, under various theories of liability. We deny any liability with respect to the fire and we have referred these claims to our insurer for an appropriate response. We do not expect that this event will have a material impact on our consolidated financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

g. Roye Fire (Recall)

On January 28, 2002, a former leased Recall records management facility located in Roye, France was destroyed by a fire. Local French authorities conducted an investigation relating to the fire and issued a charge of criminal negligence for non-compliance with security regulations against the Recall entity that leased the facility. We intend to defend this matter vigorously. We are currently corresponding with various customers impacted by the fire who are seeking payment under various theories of liability. There is also pending civil litigation with the owner of the destroyed facility, who is demanding payment for lost rental income and other items. Based on known and expected claims and our expectation of the ultimate outcome of those claims, we believe we carry adequate insurance coverage. We do not expect that this event will have a material impact on our consolidated financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

h. Puerto Rico Facility Damage

In September 2017, two of our four facilities in Puerto Rico, one owned and one leased, sustained damage as a result of Hurricane Maria. The leased facility experienced structural damage to a portion of the roof and wall, while the owned facility sustained non-structural damage to a portion of the roof. Both buildings sustained water damage that impacted certain customer records. We believe we carry adequate insurance coverage for this event and do not believe it will have a material impact to our consolidated financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. Revenues from our operations in Puerto Rico represent less than 0.5% of our consolidated revenues.
_______________________________________________________________________________

Our policy related to business interruption insurance recoveries is to record gains within Other expense (income), net in our Consolidated Statements of Operations and proceeds received within cash flows from operating activities in our Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows. Such amounts are recorded in the period the cash is received. Our policy with respect to involuntary conversion of property, plant and equipment is to record any gain or loss within (gain) loss on disposal/write-down of property, plant and equipment (excluding real estate), net within operating income in our Consolidated Statements of Operations and proceeds received within cash flows from investing activities within our Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows. Losses are recorded when incurred and gains are recorded in the period when the cash received exceeds the carrying value of the related property, plant and equipment.