Safe Deposit Box Service for Banks and Credit Unions

What Mike handles

Whether a box has a malfunctioning lock or the customer lost their keys, Mike can help. If your customer is down to one key, he can also duplicate safe deposit keys.

• Lost renter keys: the box is opened so the renter, an estate or the bank can deal with the contents
• Malfunctioning box locks: a lock that won't turn even with both keys
• Down to one key: a duplicate renter key made before the last one goes missing
• Vault chests and compartments with their own key locks

How a safe deposit lock works

Most safe deposit boxes use a dual-control lock with two keyways. The bank holds the guard key, which is the same for many boxes. The renter holds the renter key, which is unique to their box. Both have to turn to open the door, so neither the bank nor the renter can open the box alone.

The way it typically works in a bank, the customer has two renter keys and the bank holds the guard key. Opening the box takes one renter key and the guard key together. That's the design that makes a lost renter key a real problem. The bank can't simply let the customer in, because the guard key on its own does nothing.

• A lock that feels clicky or works on and off with the right keys should be examined before it fails and locks the renter out.
• Lost the second renter key? Mike can duplicate it. Most banks hold a strict policy of only two renter keys and won't allow any more to be made.
• All renter keys lost? The box has to be drilled open, and that must be set up and approved through the financial institution.

How box drilling for a lost key usually works

Every bank sets its own procedure, but the general shape is the same:

1. The renter reports the lost key and signs the bank's authorization. The bank tells them its drilling fee.
2. The bank schedules a technician, usually through the vault custodian, who controls the guard key and directs box work.
3. The renter's lock is drilled and the box door is opened, typically with the renter or bank staff present as the bank's policy requires.
4. The lock is replaced or rekeyed, and new keys are issued so the box can be rented again.

The same process applies when a renter has died or stopped paying rent and the box must be opened. In those cases the bank's own policies and state rules on unclaimed property decide what happens to the contents. Mike's job is the lock: open it cleanly and leave the box ready for use.

Duplicating a renter key

A renter with only one key left is one lost key away from a drilling. If the second renter key is lost, Mike can duplicate it. Many renter keys are stamped against copying, and banks generally control how and when a renter key is duplicated, so this is arranged through the bank rather than walked into a key shop.

For keys to other kinds of safes, see safe keys.

Why banks call a local independent

Box work tends to be urgent for the customer standing at the counter, and less so for a large service company scheduling across a region. Mike is one person with one number, based in Mayfair in Northeast Philadelphia. He came into safes and vaults through the banking industry, and he also handles time locks, vault doors and teller cash equipment.

For customers: if your bank is closing its boxes

The Philadelphia Inquirer reported in January 2025 that several large banks are moving away from safe deposit boxes. Citizens stopped offering new boxes in 2020, and Santander, PNC (at new branches), Chase and Capital One are phasing them out. The same report said some local credit unions, including Police and Fire FCU, Philadelphia FCU and American Heritage FCU, still offer boxes at some branches.

If you've had a letter asking you to empty a box, note the deadline and find your key now. If the key is lost, ask the bank about its lost-key process and fee before the deadline, since the box will need to be opened under the bank's procedure either way.

If the contents are coming home to a safe that won't open, start with safe opening.