The concept of saving essential items and valuable things in the safe deposit box is age-old. In old times, people relied on safe deposit boxes to secure their valuables with the bank. But with time, many such incidents surfaced where it was hard for the client to access his safe deposit box, and other times, all the belongings were lost due to wrong paperwork. Here are a few reasons why one should no longer use a safe deposit box.
Concern For Privacy
You might think that the items in your safe deposit box are private and known only to you, but this is not entirely true. Although banks don’t know what is inside the safe deposit boxes, they can open them when a legal proceeding demands it and hand over the contents to the lawyers without your permission. This raises the question of privacy, which you should consider when keeping items in your safe deposit box.
The Threat of Bank Failure
Banks are the safest place to store money and valuable items in an ideal world. However, some banks can go down and may declare failure. In such cases, the customers must fight legal cases to get the money back from safe deposit boxes. The government overtakes the functioning of the bank and freezes all the accounts. It means getting the items from the safe deposit boxes may take months or years.
Limited Hours of Access
The bank is usually open from 9:00 a.m. to 5 p.m. So, accessing your safe deposit box might not be accessible after those times. The bank has its policies and would not open the complete systems just so that you can access your safe deposit box after working hours. So, if you have urgent or essential documents in the safe deposit box, you can’t access them at any time.
Risk of Natural Disaster
Safe deposit boxes contain tangible items that are supposed to be secure in the banks. However, the banks are unsafe from natural disasters like earthquakes, fires, and floods. In such cases, the safe deposit boxes might get destroyed, and the bank papers might get unorganized and lost. It is hard for the Bank to know which safe deposit box had what items, making it risky to put valuable items in the safe deposit boxes.
No Insurance
If you have ever heard about Federation Deposit Insurance Corp., you should know that it covers the money in the deposit account if there is a case of bank failure. But during such an unfortunate event, if you want to access the content of your safe deposit box, then that won’t be available to you. The insurance does not cover the safe deposit boxes.
Difficult Access for Descendants
When the owner of the safe deposit box passes away, the contents of the deposit box should directly go to the descendant. When it comes to bank proceedings, it takes work. If the owner still needs to complete the legal formalities, it could cause a lot of trouble for the descendants to access the items in the safe deposit box. Hence, it is suggested that older adults take the valuable items from the safe deposit box when suitable. This will save the family from all the legal trouble.
High Rental Fee
As time has advanced, banks have been charging extra for all services. Safe Deposit boxes are no different here. With time, the bank keeps increasing the annual service charges for the safe deposit boxes. It turns out to be a high number when you add all the money you have spent on maintaining a safe deposit box. So, safe deposit boxes are not as money-savvy as they look.
Frequent Changes in Bank Policies
Nowadays, banks are changing policies to evolve to better standards. This might mean they make severe changes to the policies regarding safe deposit boxes. They might introduce new rules about what you can put in the boxes, how long you can own a box, there might be changes in the annual fee they charge for the safe deposit boxes, and anything else. Such times could be inconvenient for the customer as they must follow the bank rules and make changes accordingly.
Limited Space Available
The safe deposit boxes have a designated space to put the items. Once you get a safe deposit box, you can only fit a limited number of items. The shape and size of the item are critical, and they should fit inside the safe deposit box. If you have something more significant than the dimensions of the safe deposit box, then that item could not be included. So, you can use safe deposit boxes for a limited number of items.
Potential of Negligence
The bank might forget about looking after the safe deposit boxes. After all, the bank has to do a lot of paperwork and take care of the savings account, current account, and many other policies. In all the work the bank has to do, it would be no wonder that it operates the safe deposit boxes and then forgets about it until a customer visits. This is negligence on the part of the bank that could happen at any time.
Threat of Hacking
With Cyber crimes on the rise, banks are not safe from them. Suppose, by any chance, the bank where you have saved your deposit box comes under attack by hackers, and then it would not be easy to save your belongings and valuable items that you have saved in the bank for years and years. Safe deposit boxes are the most prone to hacking when such an incident occurs.
Better Alternatives
There are several better alternatives to safe deposit boxes, such as Home Safe, which offers high-security features, private vaults, hidden compartments, and digital storage for important documents. These alternatives are as good as a safe deposit box but with better flexibility, control, and accessibility. However, it’s essential to compare the pros and cons of each option and select the one that best fits your requirements.