By Dave Sebastian

U-Haul Co. of West Virginia said it has filed for bankruptcy after facing challenges in recent years including management turnover, a lack of enough self-storage locations and litigation costs that resulted in declining cash flow and liquidity.

The company, which serves do-it-yourself moving and self-storage customers in West Virginia and small parts of Kentucky, Virginia and Ohio, said it filed for chapter 11 protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of West Virginia.

The company said it is negotiating terms of reorganization plan with U-Haul International Inc., which is expected to give a substantial capital infusion. The chapter 11 filing and anticipated restructuring transaction are the final steps in U-Haul Co. of West Virginia's internal restructuring that started in 2020, the company said. It said the Covid-19 pandemic interrupted earlier attempts to reorganize the business.

U-Haul Co. of West Virginia said it plans to continue business without interruption, and that it doesn't expect customers to be affected by the chapter 11 filing. The company said it will continue paying its employees and maintain existing employee-benefit programs.

"This is a sad day for a very proud company," President Mark Arnold said. "This appears on balance to be the best way to continue to serve the needs of moving customers and to see that suppliers and team members get paid," he said.

The company does business at 12 owned-and-operated facilities in West Virginia, 10 of which offer public self-storage options.

Write to Dave Sebastian at dave.sebastian@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

06-17-21 0647ET