If a power of attorney provides the agent with free access to a safe deposit box does that entitle the agent to have the box drilled and closed?

I think you need to find out why a POA would want to have a box drilled and closed if they have free access. This sounds a little suspicious to me. Has the owner of the box died? If so, the POA died with them.

If you have Dave McGuinn's SDB manual, check out pages 15-5 and 15-6, for the liability issues with accepting POA's for SDB access. If you do not have his manual, PM me and I'll e-mail you the pages.

These of course are no subsitute for your bank's policies, but they might be a good resource.....

And as always, refer to your state specific code, which may also provide guidance in these situations.

The mother had stroke and is in Nursing home. Daughter needs required information (birth certificate, etc.) which is in box.

No keys found--need to drill to remove contents.
Her reason is not necesarily suspicious but we are not accepting the POA when it only addresses access to the box. (That is a little more than access).

And when the mother dies because there is information in the box that would have allowed the daughter to get something done to help her............... Or it just appears in tomorrow's newspaper? Have your attorney make that call. In my mind, access is access. If she is entitled to access - drilling the box will provide that.

I was always taught you never grant access to a Safe Deposit Box with a POA unless the POA specified the box number, bank, branch, etc. in the document. And NEVER drill on the authority of a POA. If this person is truly authorized, they can get duplicate records from the State Dept. of Vital Records. Remember Safe Deposit box losses represent unlimited liability to your financial institution, if this POA is no longer valid.

Below is an excerpt from the FDIC's Website Regarding Safe Deposit boxes:

Can I arrange for someone to access my box in an emergency?

Yes. You can jointly rent your box with a spouse, child or other person who would have unrestricted access to the box. (Warning: In some states your co-renter may face delays in accessing the box if you die. Also, merely giving someone else a key won't be enough to grant access. He or she also must sign the bank's rental contract as a joint-renter.) An alternative is to appoint a "deputy" or "agent" (NOT a power of attorney) who will have access to your box. A deputy/agent and a general power of attorney are similar in that you may grant or revoke the authority at any time, and the appointment ends if you become incompetent or die. The main difference is that a deputy or agent is appointed in the presence of the box renters and a bank employee, which gives the bank greater assurance about the validity of the authorization. "Many people are surprised to find that a power of attorney does not allow access to a box," says Donald Sansone, a Chicago banker who specializes in safe deposit issues. "The bank has no way of knowing if the power of attorney is still in effect or if the renter was competent when the power of attorney was signed."

We have a section on our SDB contracts to appoint Agents. It stipulates that they can remove any or all contents and surrender the box. It ceases at the death of the box owner.

You may also want to check your state laws regarding reliance upon Power of Attorneys. Oregon revised ours in 2001 because of situations like Randy described. Our statute pretty much gives a safe harbor upon which to rely:

"Any person who reasonably relies in good faith on the authority of an attorney-in-fact or agent under a power of attorney is not liable to any other person based on that reliance, and is not required to ensure that assets of the principal that are paid or delivered to the attorney-in-fact or agent are properly applied. Any person who has not received actual notice of revocation of a power of attorney is not liable to any other person by reason of relying on a power of attorney that has been revoked."

Two things we train our staff to watch for when presented with a Durable POA: 1) That the original POA is presented (some photocopies are so good, you cannot tell). We make a certified copy to keep with the contract; and 2) Have them complete an Affidavit that the principle is still living and the POA has not been revoked. We have them complete an affidavit each and every time a box (or account) is accessed.