If you offer safe deposit boxes to customers or non-customers, do you record both the time he/she enters the SD area and the time he/she leaves? I've heard that some do, but I'm wondering just how widespread a practice the recording of the second or "leaving" time is.

Thanks.

We have always recorded the entry and the leaving time. I have heard horror stories about people leaving their boxes in the booth, or, God forbid, getting locked in the vault because they took their box out and the attendant forgot about them! I think it would also protect the bank to have the attendant record the time the box was replaced in case anything was ever missing from the box. In such a case, there would be written proof that the tenant replaced the box in the vault, and when. I am sure there is some sound legal principle behind this practice; I just don't know what it is!
Leslie

Most safe deposit areas have a time stamp machine that stamps the request for access form the customer signs with the time of entry. I have not seen the time of exit recorded.

The question is what purpose would it serve to know how long a person had their box out?

If it is meaningful for your bank to do so, then by all means do, but as a legal requirement I don't think so.

There is no statute or rule, to my knkowledge, that requires it, but it is sound practice.

In the safe deposit area, when there is a mysterious disappearance or a claim of tampering, it is almost never possible for one side or the other to prove precisely what happened. Instead, the plaintiff makes an allegation, then attempts to show that what he alleges could have happened.

If he alleges, for example, that another renter was left in the vault unattended and could have picked his lock during that time period and cleaned out his box, being able to show that there was only a very short time period -- not long enough for such a crime to be committed -- would be helpful in guarding against liability.

In 1974 the ABA published a small paperback book called the "Safe Deposit Handbook". In that book they mention that some State laws mandate that you record the time the box was returned to the vault. You may want to see if your state has any statutes regarding this issue.
Leslie

1974?

That must be a family heirloom, Leslie? Handed down for two generations?

Get with the times, Leslie! Our safe deposit handbook is dated 1976, much more current!

That's no so old, John. You had only been a banker for what, 10 years, when it was published?

Recording the "in" and "out" times is a preferred practice for the reasons Mary Beth states. Being able to establish whether other customers were in their safe deposit boxes in overlapping time frames or perhaps who used the coupon booth after this customer might be very helpful. In essence, if I have the time of entry and departure, I can chart the safe deposit activity for the day.

I notice that several of the above posts reference leaving a renter in the vault unattended. Is it not customary to either direct the customer to a privacy booth or to have an attendant remain in the vault with them if the customer 'only needs a minute?' Seems like this could solve a handful of the problems that could arise. BTW, for the record, we also record exit times on our safe deposit access cards.

A number of banks simply don't have private viewing booths, unfortunately. That means that the customer is just right in the vault with their box and the banker refrains from being in the vault at the same time in order to afford the customer privacy and in order to avoid seeing/knowing what is in the box.

In other cases, the bank is small enough that it doesn't have a dedicated position for safe deposit vault attendant and it falls on whoever is handy to let the customer into the box. Once let the customer retrieves the box, the employee goes back to other work.

When I was visiting my family in GA, I went to the bank(branch) with them to look for a document in their safe deposit box. There was no attendent! They leave the vault door open and customers help themselves to their boxes. Very unusal to me! They did not clock in or out!

Just wondering how you check OFAC when renting safe deposit boxes. Do you check it before renting and then refuse? Do you only check it after renting and then confiscate when they try to take something out?

What kind of lock system did they have, lhf?

John,
The Safe Deposit Book book was an heirloom, left behind by my previous boss when she retired and left the Bank after over 30 years! I think she still has the original employee handbook from 1868! (Come to think of it, I think she still uses the original employee handbook!)
Leslie

wwmike:

Here's an additional approach:
1. Install a camera in the vault that captures the facial image (NOT the activities of the box holder) of every person who enters the vault;
2. Install an analog clock on the vault wall (and on one wall of the lobby of each cash-handling facility, too) that serves as a background for the video camera, and ensure that both the clock face and the correct time are visible on the videotape; and
3. In addition to the person's handwritten signature, add a place for the person's "thumbprint signature" on the history card -- and then require that every person seeking access to a safe deposit box will be thumbprinted in an employee's presence.

I've forwarded the "Safe Deposit Box" policy and procedure from my Security Program Manual for posting on BOL -- and it should become available in BOL's Bankers Tools section shortly. This sample policy may provide you with some additional ideas.

My father had a regular safe deposit key. I guess that disengaged the master key lock, because that was all it took to open the box.