Is a Safe Deposit Box Really Safe?

Protecting your money and valuables is a priority. Many people choose to do that by renting a safe deposit box. But is it safe?

Money expert Clark Howard says safe deposit boxes are not as safe as you think. The simple reason is this: “Because the banks don’t care and they don’t manage it well.”

In this article, we’ll cover how safe a safe deposit box really is as well as show you an alternative.

Why Safe Deposit Boxes Could Be a Bad Idea

Clark says he used to recommend safety deposit boxes, but during the Great Recession around 2008, a lot of people lost their possessions when banks shut their doors.

“A bank would go insolvent, a branch would be purchased by somebody else, the banks would close and your possessions would go lost in space,” he says.

“We got complaint after complaint about this,” he says, referring to his Consumer Action Center, which gives people free financial advice.

“People who had trusted that bank with their stuff in safe deposit banks, their stuff vanished along with the failure of the bank and the branch,” he says.

Here are some other reasons why a safe deposit box is not the protection you may think it is.

Inconvenience

Besides, safe deposit boxes aren’t terribly convenient: You have to get to the bank, and it has to be open when you need your items. With a home safe, you can access the contents any time you want.

‘A Legal Gray Area’

A New York Times article tells the story of a New Jersey man who had kept his collection of rare watches in a safe deposit box at a local bank since 1983. That bank changed ownership many times over the years, eventually becoming a Wells Fargo.

In 2014, he opened the box to find that his watches — along with some other valuables and documents he had in the box — were missing. The total value of the items? An estimated $10 million-plus!

Unfortunately, according to the Times:

“There are an estimated 25 million safe deposit boxes in America, and they operate in a legal gray zone within the highly regulated banking industry. There are no federal laws governing the boxes; no rules require banks to compensate customers if their property is stolen or destroyed.”

The man spent thousands of dollars in legal fees suing the bank over his losses but, five years later, had yet to get any sort of settlement, although the bank was able to locate some of his watches and return them to him.

Where To Put Your Valuables Instead of a Safe Deposit Box

Clark doesn’t like safe deposit boxes for exactly the reason described in the case above.

Instead, he says: “I keep valuables in a large fireproof safe. It’s well hidden and way too heavy for anyone to just walk out with.”

“Buy yourself your own big safe that is fireproof and put your possessions in it, because the banks fouled this up in the aftermath of the banking scandals.”

Additionally, anything stored in your home will be covered by your homeowners insurance, which is not always the case with safe deposit boxes.

Note that some items, such as expensive jewelry, will likely need a special insurance rider to be covered up to their full value. Check with your home insurance company to see if this applies to you.

How Much Do Fireproof Safes Cost?

Inexpensive fireproof safes that can hold a few documents start around $30. Extra-large, heavy-duty models can cost hundreds of dollars.

Conclusion

Safety deposit boxes used to be popular, but confidence in them has lessened over the years.

Clark says the best way to ensure that your possessions are protected is to secure them yourself.

“You are your best safety deposit box. Having a big fire safe that is big enough that burglars cannot carry it out is something I would recommend,” he says.

Want more money-saving advice? Read up on how much cash you should keep at home.