What the arrangement actually is
You rent a box. The bank provides the premises and the security around it. It does not take custody of the contents, because it has no idea what they are.
That distinction drives everything. When you deposit money, the bank knows the amount and owes it to you. When you place something in a locker, there is no record of what went in — no declaration, no inventory, no receipt describing the contents.
So if something goes wrong, the first difficulty is evidential: proving what was there. This is not a technicality that arises rarely; it is the central problem in almost every locker dispute.
How far the bank's liability goes
Not as far as most people assume, and the details matter.
Under the revised locker framework, banks bear responsibility for losses arising from their own negligence or deficiency — fire, theft, building collapse, or fraud by employees — and the compensation is capped, calculated on a stated basis rather than on what you say the contents were worth.
Banks generally disclaim liability for events outside their control, including natural calamities. And critically:
Locker contents are not covered by deposit insurance. DICGC cover applies to deposits — savings, current, fixed, recurring. It does not extend to whatever is in a locker.
The exact basis of the cap, the circumstances in which it applies and the current model agreement terms are set by regulation and have been revised. Read your own locker agreement rather than relying on any summary, including this one — it is a short document and it is the thing that governs.
So insure the contents separately
The practical consequence of the section above.
If a locker holds jewellery or valuables worth a meaningful sum, the bank's capped liability is unlikely to make you whole. Cover for the contents has to come from your own insurance, not from the bank.
Home insurance policies often cover jewellery, sometimes including items held in a bank locker, and often with a sub-limit. Specific jewellery cover is also available. Two things to confirm in the wording: whether items in a locker are covered at all, and what documentation a claim requires.
Which leads to the step that makes any of it workable: keep your own inventory. A dated list with photographs, valuations where available, and purchase receipts, stored somewhere other than the locker. Without it, both the insurer and the bank are being asked to accept your account of what was there.
The one thing that should not go in
A will. And, by extension, the documents index.
The reason is circular and people discover it too late. After a death, opening a locker may itself require succession documentation — which is precisely what the will was going to provide. The document that would have simplified matters is locked behind the process it was meant to shorten.
The same logic applies to anything needed urgently in an emergency: original policy documents, property papers required at short notice, passports if you travel at short notice. A locker is accessible during banking hours, on working days, by an authorised person — which is a poor match for an urgent need.
Lockers are for things that are valuable and rarely needed. Not for things that are needed quickly.
Nomination, and access after a death
Lockers have their own nomination facility, separate from your accounts, and it is commonly left blank.
With a nominee named, access after the hirer's death follows a defined process. Without one, it becomes a legal exercise at exactly the moment a family has other things to deal with — the same nominee-versus-heir distinction applies, in that the nominee may be entitled to access rather than to own the contents.
Two practical points. Banks generally prepare an inventory when a locker is opened after a death, which is the only inventory that will exist if you did not make one. And for a jointly-hired locker, the operating mandate matters for the same reason it does on a joint account — a "jointly" mandate stops working when one hirer cannot attend.
Practical matters
- Visit periodically. Lockers unused for long periods can be classified inoperative and the bank may act on them after due notice. An annual visit avoids it — and gives you a chance to refresh the inventory.
- Keep the rent paid, ideally by standing instruction. Arrears can lead to the locker being broken open after notice.
- Know who is authorised. Only the hirer or an authorised person may operate it.
- You may be asked for a fixed deposit as security, covering rent and break-open costs. There are limits on what banks may insist on — worth checking the current rule rather than accepting a demand.
- Record the locker on your documents index — bank, branch, locker number, who is authorised, and where the key is. A locker nobody knows about is the same problem as an account nobody knows about.
Whether you need one
Worth asking, because the use case has narrowed.
Share certificates and most financial instruments are now dematerialised. Property documents are increasingly digitised. Insurance policies can be held electronically. What remains for most households is physical jewellery and a small number of original documents.
Against that, a locker costs annual rent, may require a deposit as security, and is accessible only in banking hours. For a household with little physical valuables, a good home safe plus proper insurance may be a better fit — and for one with substantial jewellery, the locker plus separate insurance remains sensible.
Either way the decision should follow from what you actually need to store, which is a shorter list than it was a decade ago.
The part that is just record-keeping
Most of what makes a locker work — or fail — is documentation rather than security. An inventory, an insurance policy that covers the contents, a nomination, and a note on the documents index.
That index is the same one that prevents financial assets going unclaimed, and it is worth keeping current alongside your holdings. FNOTrader's Mutual Funds app values fund holdings against the full AMFI NAV history — around 34 million NAV rows — so the financial side of the list carries real figures.
FNOTrader is not a bank or a law firm, and this is not legal advice. Locker terms are set by regulation and by your own agreement with the bank.
Common questions
Is the money or jewellery in my bank locker insured?
Not by the bank's deposit insurance. DICGC cover applies to deposits — savings, current, fixed and recurring — and does not extend to locker contents. Cover for the contents has to come from your own insurance.
How much is a bank liable for if my locker is robbed?
Banks bear responsibility for losses from their own negligence or deficiency, such as fire, theft, building collapse or employee fraud, and the compensation is capped on a stated basis rather than on what you say the contents were worth. Read your own locker agreement, since terms have been revised.
Why does the bank not know what is in my locker?
Because you rent a box rather than deposit an item — there is no declaration, inventory or receipt describing the contents. That evidential gap is the central problem in almost every locker dispute.
Should I keep my will in a bank locker?
No. After a death, opening a locker may itself require succession documentation, which is precisely what the will would have provided — so the document that would simplify matters is locked behind the process it was meant to shorten.
What should I keep in a locker?
Things that are valuable and rarely needed. Not anything required urgently, since a locker is accessible only in banking hours on working days by an authorised person — which is a poor match for an emergency.
Do lockers have nomination?
Yes, separate from your accounts, and it is commonly left blank. With a nominee, access after the hirer's death follows a defined process; without one it becomes a legal exercise at the worst possible moment.
What happens if I never visit my locker?
Lockers unused for long periods can be classified inoperative and the bank may act after due notice, and unpaid rent can lead to the locker being broken open. An annual visit avoids both and lets you refresh your inventory.
Do I still need a bank locker?
The use case has narrowed — shares are dematerialised, documents increasingly digitised, policies held electronically. For most households what remains is physical jewellery and a few originals, which is worth weighing against the rent and restricted access.
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