This locker is not available for free. For this you have to pay a locker rent to the bank every year. But most people do not know that rent is not the only charge on bank locker, but in different circumstances a total of 5 charges can be imposed. Let us know about it in detail.
Locker facility is provided by many banks. Many people take advantage of this facility to keep their important things safe. People keep their important documents, jewelery or any other valuable items in this locker. This is the reason why it is also called Safe Deposit Locker. However, this locker is not available for free.
For this you have to pay a locker rent to the bank every year. But most people do not know that rent is not the only charge on bank locker, but in different circumstances a total of 5 charges can be imposed. Let us know about them.
These 5 charges are levied on bank locker
- The most important and necessary charge on bank locker is that you have to pay locker rent.
- While availing the facility of locker in the bank, in many banks you also have to pay one time registration fee.
- Under the rules, there is a certain limit on when you can visit the bank locker. If you visit the locker more than that limit, you have to pay additional locker visit charges.
- If you delay in paying the locker rent, you have to pay the locker rent including penalty. That means you have to pay overdue charges separately.
- If in any situation you have to break the locker, then you have to pay the charges for that also.
What can be kept in a bank locker?
According to the revised guidelines of the Reserve Bank of India, the existing locker holders will also have to enter into a revised locker agreement. The Reserve Bank of India has fixed the deadline for the revised locker agreement as 31 December 2023. According to State Bank of India, bank locker can be used only for legitimate purposes. Valuable things like jewelery and documents can be stored in it, but cash and currency cannot be stored in it.
What things are prohibited to be kept in bank locker
According to the website of State Bank of India, first of all you cannot keep cash or currency in the locker. Apart from this, things like weapons, explosives, drugs cannot be kept in any bank locker. If there is any rotting item then it also cannot be kept in the locker. Not only this, any radioactive material or any illegal thing or anything which is banned as per Indian law cannot be kept in the bank locker. No such material can be kept in the bank locker, which may pose a threat to the bank or any of its customers.
Bank locker opens with two keys
It takes two keys to open a bank locker. One key is with the customer and the other with the bank manager. Unless both the keys are inserted, the locker will not open. Now the question is, what will happen if you lose the key of your bank locker? What are the rules regarding bank locker? Let us know.
If the key of the bank locker is lost then first of all you have to inform the bank about it. Besides, an FIR for loss of keys will also have to be lodged. If the key of your bank locker is lost then two things can happen in that situation-
The first is that the bank should issue a new key for your locker. For this the bank will make a duplicate key. However, the risk in making a duplicate key is that the person making the duplicate key of that locker may do something wrong in the future.
The second situation is that the bank will issue you a second locker and the first locker will be broken. After breaking the locker, all its contents will be shifted to another locker and its key will be given to the customer. However, the customer may have to bear the entire expense from breaking the locker to getting the locker repaired again. In such a situation, try to keep the key very safe.
How is a locker broken?
The arrangement of bank locker is such that from opening to breaking, both the customer and the bank official are present during every work. Whenever a customer wants to go to the bank and open his locker, the bank manager also goes to the locker room along with him. There are two keys in the locker there. One key is with the customer and the other with the bank. Unless both the keys are inserted, the locker will not open. After the locker is unlocked, the bank official leaves the room and the customer can see, change or remove the items kept in the locker with complete privacy.
Similarly, when a bank locker is broken into, it is necessary for the bank officer as well as the customer to be there. If the locker is taken in a joint then it is necessary for all the members to be present there. If the customer gives in writing that the locker can be broken even in his absence, then the locker can be broken even without the customer and the goods contained in it can be shifted to another locker.
When can the bank break the locker itself?
If a person faces a criminal case and it appears that the person has hidden something in his locker that may be related to the crime, then the locker can be broken into. However, in this situation it is necessary to have police officers along with bank officials.
According to SBI, if a person does not pay the rent of his locker for 3 years, then the bank can recover his rent by breaking the locker. If a customer’s locker remains in-operative for 7 years and there is no trace of the customer, even if his rent continues to come, the bank can demolish that locker.
