![]() ![]() Ask an agent about adding what's called a personal articles floater to your home or auto policy. However, items can be insured through your own private insurer. ![]() "If you don't know what it is, you don't know the value of it,” McGuinn says. Remember, your bank has no idea what's kept in your box. No matter what you store in your safe deposit box, be aware that it isn't insured by the bank, by the FDIC or by any other government agency. Insure the content of your safe deposit box Some financial institutions also advise against storing cash, guns or other potentially dangerous or illegal items in safe deposit boxes. "Some of the mega banks put a clause in that you can't put anything of value in them,” says McGuinn, “which kind of takes away the need of a safe deposit box.” However, he notes that banks don't vet what goes in your safe deposit box - you put items in and take items out in private – so the restrictions aren't enforceable. Examples include heirloom jewelry, original copies of adoption papers and important family photos. Items that should be stored in a safe deposit box are those that are expensive, or difficult if not impossible to replace. (Ideally, the original copy of your will should be kept at the law firm where it was drafted - or in your home safe if you drafted it yourself - and not in a safe deposit box where it's difficult to retrieve after you die.) You might also consider including this information in a letter of instruction that accompanies your will, and give copies of both to your will's executor. Make sure a trusted friend or family member is aware of what's kept in the safe and the lock combination. Instead, consider keeping these items at home in a fireproof safe. Think your passport in case you need to take an emergency trip, or your living will in case you're gravely injured, according to the American Bankers Association (ABA). ![]() ![]() Since access to a safe deposit box is limited to banking hours, important items that may be needed at a moment's notice are better off stored elsewhere. By the end of 2021, there were an unprecedented 2,927 fewer bank branches nationwide, eclipsing the annual closure record set in 2020, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence data.īut just because you have a safe deposit box doesn't mean you should automatically stash all of your valuables in it. However, brick-and-mortar bank branches are vanishing across the country, meaning you may have to travel farther to access or lease a new deposit box. "My clients are still expanding vaults, adding boxes, and doing everything they can to accommodate their customers,” says McGuinn. That in itself, he says, is evidence of continuing demand. While some big banks are moving away from safe deposit boxes, especially in newly constructed branches, McGuinn estimates there are still over 25 million leased safe deposit boxes in the U.S. “You've got one central location, and your family knows where your stuff is." "If you have anything that is hard to replace or has sentimental value or you want to pass on to your kids, that's probably the best reason for getting a safe deposit box,” says Dave McGuinn, founder and president of Safe Deposit Specialist, a financial consulting firm. En español | As more emphasis is placed on protecting digital records and online identities, a need remains to secure our most precious physical belongings. ![]()
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