Deposit Safes: What are they and do you need one for your home or business?

When it comes to safes you’re not limited by choice. There are safes for banks and treasuries, safes for schools, safes for keys and simple budget safes for home. But when it comes to allowing non-key holders to still be able to place contents in your safe, it’s deposit safes that you need.

Deposit safes are the perfect choice for shops, offices, schools or other large businesses with a cash or valuables management issue. You may not want everyone to have access to the cash once it’s inside the safe – but you might want to allow anyone to be able to put the cash or valuables in there in the first place.

Deposit safes allow non-key holders to deposit cash or valuables into your safe via a drawer or shoot without being able to take them back out again or being responsible for the security of it.

There are a few choices with deposit safes, so here’s a quick run down of the main types that you’ll come across.

Drawer deposit safes – for large amounts of cash or bulky valuables

Drawer deposit safes are exactly as they sound. A large front-loading drawer will allow anyone to place cash or valuables into the safe by opening and then closing the drawers.

Most drawer deposit safes will have a special ‘trap’ in the draw to stop anyone gaining access to the contents of the safe once they’re inside. These are often called ‘anti-fishing devices’.

The key holder can easily gain access via a safe door like any other safe. This type of safe is perfect for cash, security tapes, jewellery, or any other moderately bulky deposits.

Letter slot deposit – envelope or cash deposits

Letter slot deposits are for the slimmer deposits out there. Mostly used for cheques, bonds or valuable papers, these deposit safes are more efficient on space as they don’t have a cumbersome drawer or mechanism to allow deposits.

Because of the light nature of the safe’s build these safes are lighter and can house more deposits. Of course the key holder can store large amounts of cash or valuables and place them in via the main door too.

These safes are perfect for shops and businesses who need to keep large amounts of paper money safe but who also need to keep change and other valuables on-site too.

Rotary deposit safe – for the largest deposits

A rotary drawer will allow much larger deposits that a drawer safe and are more at home being filled with change from slot machines than having envelopes of cash posted into them.

A rotary deposit safe works by simply opening the cylinder-shaped trap, filling it with cash and then tipping in all in. These safes are very much at home behind a cashier’s desk or in a bank.

Counter deposit safes – the under-the-counter depositer

These are much smaller than the other deposit safes and are designed to be fitted under a counter. Ideal for shops and restaurants, these safes give the option to make quick and simple cash deposits in a limited space.

A counter deposit safe are perfect behind a shop counter or under a restaurant’s till.

Underfloor deposit safes – capsule deposits made easy

The underfloor safe is very popular with houses or businesses who don’t have much space or who really want to conceal their safe. The deposit shoot on these types of deposit safes gives you the option to allow non-keyholders to make cash drops without gaining access to the main safe.

These deposit safes are very popular with petrol stations or somewhere like a security hut, which doesn’t have a secure wall or cupboard, but does have a concrete floor to install the safe. The shoot is designed to have small plastic capsules dropped down them once they’re filled with notes or small amounts of coins. The keyholder can access the safe through the top and lift the capsules out.

Deposit safes come in all shapes, sizes, and cash ratings

Choose your safe to suit your needs, your lifestyle, building or business. Our deposit safes have cash rating options and can cater for most insurance or cash management needs.

It’s important to work out how your safe will be accessed, used and how much it will store. Like any safe purchase, research is important and of course you can always call the experts for FREE advice.